The Heroes of Sakakino (sequel)
by WolfManJim
Summary: With the shockwave of previous events beginning to die down, Kotonoha and Eiichi are trying to take life as high school celebrities as slow as is manageable. Unbeknownst to them, there are forces outside of their comfortable relationship bent upon pulling them apart.
1. Chapter 1 Meet n' Greet

**Chapter 1: Future Complications and a Meet n' Greet**

Does true love endure, truly? Can one really know another, as they know themselves? Or is it from another that they learn of themselves? Or does it take the mind of one who is comfortable with themselves to endure through true love? Is it a bond? A weight? Or a blessing? Is it reserved for those who only have a mature heart? Or does it make the heart more mature? More aware of what it seeks? Can love truly endure, or does it require the efforts, the obligations of the one's in love?

1The sun in a cloudless sky shone its white spears directed at the earth, casting dim shadows from trees and structures to the chilled ground. Bits of snow lay in crusty, frosted over clumps beneath the most shaded portions. A crisp breeze greeted the face and bare hands of every pedestrian with the promise of spring.

At the cold structure of Sakakino Academy, a bell could be heard from within its broad walls. Minutes later, students left the school, some still wearing heavy coats, others braving the still chilly weather with their uniforms and a couple layers underneath.

In the groups to follow, Eiichi Kuzoka and Kotonoha Katsura could be seen walking together. Eiichi talked lively, making fighting posses with both fists raised at moments to an invisible opponent, mimicking punching movements and dancing about on his toes. Kotonoha observed with a polite smile and calm stature.

"…and then Roy Lyoto was all over him! Frankie tried to swing wide and get around his guard, but he reached too far, and Roy just laid in to 'em! He had 'em up against the ropes, _pah-pah-pah_!"

Eiichi threw more punches at the wind. He could tell his cohort only derived her excitement from his own, and not the subject matter, but she did not mind.

"But Frank managed to get an upper cut in and Roy backed off. It was a good fight. Roy won, but not by knock out."

"Roy sounds like he's aiming for the title," she added.

"Yeah, he's been moving up fast, but only two knockouts before stepping in with Frankie."

Two girls were walking past while glancing at the couple.

"The only time he gets excited is when he's around her…" one chattered.

"A match made in heaven…" said the other.

Eiichi put his hands in his pockets and filed back in with Kotonoha.

"You're not thinking of actually becoming a fighter, are you?" she asked, delicate concern on her voice.

"Well, I don't know. I'd place myself at amateur status, but I've been thinking of joining a gym. Who knows, I just might," he teased.

"You're being mean again."

"Ya never know what's on the horizon, I just might get a sponsor."

"You may be off having fun, but I don't think I could handle the strain."

"Once 'Eiichi Kuzoka' becomes a big name," he blared his name in a deep, perfunctory voice, "and I'm stepping into a ring surrounded by thousands of people, you won't have to worry about me anymore."

"I'd have to worry about the blood and bruising…"

"But you've always been my naughty nurse."

"Sh!" her eyes widened, excited and panicked, and she peered about to make sure no one heard.

"And wouldn't you enjoy the experience of having your name shouted on national television?" Eiichi stepped out. "Koto-chan!" he let his jaw go slack, slurring his words, "I did it!" and raised his fists high.

She shook her head, "You're such a ham," and extended a lazy hand.

Eiichi met her and curved an arm around her shoulders, "Nah, I wouldn't do that to you. I know coming home in a wreck every night would be too much."

"Your concern is duly noted."

"I'm at least going to join the gym."

"I'm not going to stop you."

Another group of students passed, eyeing them, and then continued on.

"I just hope you have a more realistic idea for what you're going to do once you graduate," she craned her head to look at him.

"Ahmm, I suppose I've had a few ideas. At least until I get my feet off the ground and really decide on something. What do you want to do?"

"I've been thinking about political sciences."

"Ugh, you know I don't like to hear the 'p-word'."

"I don't think I'll do anything really extravagant though."

"That's what they all say, before their lust for money and power consumes them, as they begin controlling everything they can!" he spread his hands out, trying to look as malevolent as possible. "Tax the middle class! Regulate the masses! Pulling the strings!"

"Aren't you overdoing it a little?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah, maybe… Still, that's a world I could not see you getting mixed up in."

They passed a grove of trees outside the gate before crossing the road.

"Hm…maybe your abilities could benefit you in some ways," she placed a finger near the corner of her mouth.

"Yeah? Like how?"

"I thought for the longest time you were studying psychology as a hobby. Maybe reading emotions could benefit you there."

"Me? You can honestly see me sitting in a chair, listening to people talk about their problems all day?"

This conjured an odd image in Eiichi's head of him seated impatiently in a leather upholstered chair, his eye twitching while listening to a prattling patient.

"I'd probably end up losing _my_ mind."

"Oh no, I think you'd be fantastic!"

"Well that's great that you think so…"

"Let's put that on the maybe list. What about a detective?"

Eiichi did have a lot of fun messing with the girls from Kotonoha's committee club, and the idea of making criminals sweat seemed very rewarding and entertaining.

"So you'd rather I give up boxing and be a detective instead? What kind of priorities of yours are these anyways?"

"Less blood, and you like action movies, don't you?"

"Among others…" he admitted.

"Maybe criminal justice could be your route, maybe a lawyer."

At first he didn't like the idea, but it would provide better, so she wouldn't be the only one with all the money.

Before them lay a quiet park, spread out with a floor of yellowish grass, still regaining life from the frost. By a row of trees were two benches, spaced a few trees apart. They set their bags down and sat next to each other.

Eiichi spoke up, "I just had a thought. Maybe you could go into business."

She looked at him, curious, "Like how?"

"Well, it should not be too difficult for you to get something started. You could start a florist shop, or maybe a knitting place! I could help out, we could both work there!"

"And you'd be okay with that?" eyeing him oddly.

"I'm not so prideful that I couldn't handle a modest job, gimme' a break. Besides, it might look good on me, I get the feeling your mom thinks I'm a leech…"

"Why? She likes you."

"Yeah…but she knows I'm not employed and I don't come from wealthy roots. Honestly, your house makes mine look like I'm living in 'South Central' Tokyo."

"But I like your house, it's cozy. I think you've been reading into too many emotions."

"Yeah, maybe…" he reached in to his coat pocket and pulled out a slender, white cylinder in the shape of a cigarette.

A few weeks back, before leaving on a date, Kotonoha called him in as soon as he arrived at her house. She sat him down at her coffee table and presented a wrapped package to him. Upon opening it, there were two similar cylinders inside, complete with chargers and flavor cartridges.

'Oh, I've heard about these!' he had said.

'Mhm!' Kotonoha beamed.

'Um, thank you very much, but you really shouldn't have…'

'Oh, just give it a try.'

'But I've heard they require a lot of maintenance.'

'That's true, but you'll save money. The tobacco companies are really trying to make these look bad, but my father is looking at investing in them.'

'How did you even get it? You're not eighteen yet.'

'Torio and I were out shopping and I thought this would be a great gift. C'mon, I know you've been trying to quit, and this is a better alternative. Try it, they have hundreds of different flavors, I didn't really know what to pick. _And_ you can smoke it inside…' she had tipped her head in a convincing smirk.

Eiichi opened his mouth to say something, and shut it.

Then he said, 'I…can't argue with that…'

Kotonoha giggled and helped him put together one of the devises. She watched, excited, as he puffed on it and gentle white vapors floated from between his lips.

He coughed, 'Wow, that's intense.'

'Yeah, the clerk said it would provide a…'throatier hit'?'

'But I like it. It's sweet…' he had continued dragging on it.

At present, he puffed on the same cylinder, not holding it like a cigarette, but with his fingers curled around it like a handle, while seated next to his generous gift giver, watching the traffic beyond the park limits.

"Man, all these ideas you keep suggesting only involve more school. Years of it. I could probably memorize what I need in less time and just take the final. 'Here's your degree Kuzoka-san, you're now a licensed nuclear physicist.'"

"There you go again…"

"But I've got to pick something soon," he stressed, leaning forward on his knees. "If you were to start a business, it would be a whole 'nother year before I'd have anything to do with it. Unless your dad can set something up and get me started early, you think he could do that?"

He looked at her desperately.

"He could hire you on somewhere."

"Maybe I could get an office job like Torio, or maybe work in a burger place…"

He felt a surge of hysterical emotion coming from her all of a sudden. He turned to look and just as he was turning, she had turned away, her shoulders bouncing, a single hand raised out of his view to cover her mouth. Her sudden flood of humor gently massaged to his grey matter, but he was none the less curious as to what sparked it.

"What? I said burger place…"

Her tremors became more intense, a squeak escaped her.

Then a barrage of cackles leapt from her throat from a pressure she could no longer contain.

"Are you seriously laughing at me? You're laughing at me!"

She faced forward again, revealing a curled hand held over grinning elegant lips and a beading of tears in the corners of her eyes.

"I'm in a predicament here, and you're laughing at me!"

Her intense amusement sent Eiichi messages of a vigorously annoyed, stress marked copy of himself, standing at the counter of a fast food restaurant, an apron covering his front and visor seated in his flecked hair, complete with a blaring customer.

"Oh ha-ha, very funny…"

Kotonoha roared on, trying to talk between her bouts of hilarity, "Haha!…That's cheating!…I can't…I can't…Pfff! _Ah_! _Haha_!"

Eiichi, deciding to play along, leaned in close, "Would you like fries with that?"

" _Hahaha_! Stop it! Stay back!" Kotonoha leaned away, unable to defend against his table turning abilities.

Chest heaving, she wiped the corners of her eyes, letting out a few remaining chuckles, "Oh, I'm sorry about that."

"Nah, you actually did me a favor, I'm not as stressed anymore."

"But I don't really think I could see you working a job like that, you might turn the place upside down."

"Well, at least you think of me in that respect," he slouched against the bench and took another drag.

This time, she leaned in close, right next to his face, "I think of you in a lot of respects…" and pecked him on the cheek.

"C'mere you."

She giggled, pressing up against him, laying her head on his shoulder, his arm wove its way over her upper back, the hand curled over her shoulder. He squeezed her tight and kissed her on the crown of her shimmering black hair.

"It'll all turn out fine, don't worry so much," she muttered.

It still felt a little odd coming from her, this confidence, but she was right.

They watched a group of kids playing about on a jungle gym off to the left. A man passed through minutes later with a dog, followed by another couple going the opposite direction.

"It's going to feel weird having to meet you at school after graduating."

"It's only going to be a year. Look at it as, you'll get to see the place a few more times before really leaving."

"Haha, just when I thought I'd finally be rid of it. At least I get to see you in the stockings and short skirt one more year."

"I don't have to get rid of them."

"You – are – awesome…"

"I know…"

The traffic droned and another cool wind blew gently across their faces.

"There are plenty of people that'll be sad to see you go, even if you've been avoidant all this time. Maybe you should take the time to get to know some of them. Maybe, what you need is a friend."

"But I've got you," he gave her a gentle squeeze.

"Yes, yes you do, but good friends are necessary as well."

There was a reason why Eiichi was just as avoidant as she had once been. What made them different were her attempts at making possible friends, while he had wanted to be left alone with proceeding about his attempt at a boring high school life. All this time he'd thought it was just her and him, against the world, plus Torio, but he wasn't about to start splitting hairs.

"I'll take it under consideration."

2They sat a little longer, enjoying the stillness in each other's company before setting off. They had passed through the park and were headed up a winding backroad.

"So, where do you want to go? My place or yours?" he turned his head as they walked.

"Hm…my mom might be home today."

"My place it is then," he answered abruptly.

"I wonder if it's not that my mom doesn't like you, but you don't like her."

"No, no, but there's another that I know doesn't take a liking to me."

When Eiichi first visited Kotonoha's house, while not in a premonition, he had been greeted with an intense glare and a stinging pain in his cranium coming from the large pair of eyes that was Kotonoha's little sister, Kokoro, who had an obvious grudge with this random stranger her older sister had started bringing home with her. Kotonoha had been barraged with questions from her as to what had happened to Makoto, who was very much alive at the time. Because Kokoro had already certified Makoto as Kotonoha's future husband and older brother material, seeing Eiichi around her and how close they were getting did not sit right with her in the least. It seemed no matter where Eiichi went, he needed to prove his worth, while things seemed to just happen for Makoto.

"Kokoro…is just taking some time getting to know you," she passed him a contemplative look.

"Yeah, well last time I checked, getting to know someone did not entail locking yourself in your room until they're gone, or even wishing an untimely death upon them."

"Kokoro wouldn't wish that…"

"You don't know kids," he tapped his temple.

"Well, even so, the more you're around her, eventually she'll start to calm down and she may even warm up to you. Which is why you should come home with me today."

"Man…"

Eiichi was beginning to feel wisps of a saddened heart up ahead. Standing by a back gate, up against the wall, stood a girl from their school. Her tote bag was on the ground by her feet and she had her face rigidly clasped in her hands, her short pony tail danced while she sobbed with little sign of trying to hide it.

Far being it from Eiichi and Kotonoha to avoid a person in need, as well as being used to it now, they approached without a word between the two of them. Eiichi already knew the story, but went about things as if he didn't. She'd come here to release the strain so no one would see.

He edged up to the weeping damsel.

"Hello…" Kotonoha tried to be cheery.

"Excuse me, are you—Ah!"

Eiichi had leaned in too close and was suddenly attacked by a pair of grabby arms that swung about his neck and shoulders in a death grip. The girl buried her face in the knitted sweater under his school coat and proceeded to sob uncontrollable.

Before he could say anything, Eiichi sensed another negative aura from right behind him.

"This isn't good…" muttering to himself.

He turned, with the girl still clinging to him, to find Kotonoha glaring at him from beneath the shade of her tilted bangs. Jealousy wafted from her person. Inside, he could hear her cold and distant voice muttering to him in tones of displaced anger.

' _Eiichi…why are you touching her…_ '

Eiichi could not respond out loud, so as to worsen the girl's already broken confidence, so he attempted desperately to mouth his plight beneath her cries.

" _I'm innocent! Innocent!_ "

' _She crying into your chest, Eiichi…_ '

" _I'm not touching her! My hands are up! See?_ "

' _Remember when I cried into your chest, Eiichi…_ '

" _If you don't want her touching me, then_ you _get over here and take her! I'm about to pass out!_ "

Kotonoha surprisingly understood and approached the girl to gently take her into her arms.

"There, there, here—Wah!"

The girl attacked her as well, nearly burying her face in Kotonoha's larger than life mammaries.

' _Wow, she really did just need someone to cry on._ '

Eiichi eyed the two, with a smirk at Kotonoha, ' _Is it my turn to act crazy now?_ '

A corner of Kotonoha's mouth scrunched up a little, as if she understood, ' _Sh-shut up…_ '

Kotonoha took her time consoling the poor girl, who seemed to be settling down a little, now that she was surrounded by people with concern.

"Hey…hey…what's the matter?"

"H-He…just left me…just like that! No warning…nothing!" the girl mumbled through threatening bouts of despair.

"Oh my, why are you all alone?"

"I couldn't stand…to be around anyone…I couldn't let them see me like this…" she sniffled and a few bursts of air escaped her teeth in empty sobs.

"What about home? Why didn't you go home?"

"I just couldn't hold it in any longer…"

What a considerate girl. Eiichi had his impression of students in general, but was always thankful for souls like this one.

"I loved him so much…he was the first guy I was actually getting somewhere with…"

Eiichi had let Kotonoha take care of things, waiting to chime in, "If he was willing to be so unpredictable with the whole thing, it doesn't sound like he has much character. Doesn't sound like he deserved you."

The girl loosed her grip on Kotonoha, revealing her face. Underneath the tears and redness, she had a very smooth, youthful complexion.

"My friends, if they heard about this, they would never leave me alone. I couldn't show this side of me to them…"

Eiichi got a read that she was typically the lively, energetic type. She felt this would be too unbecoming of her and would bring everyone down.

"It's alright," Kotonoha said. "Give it time. It will pass."

"No…" she shook her head. "He's the only one for me…"

At another time, Eiichi would have thought this was a load of bull, but he had learned different.

He looked to Kotonoha, who he found, was already looking to him in apt admiration over the shoulder of the sobbing girl. He could not imagine losing her, the thought made his heart sink so far down into a black pit of what would seem to be lifelong despair. It would send him down that same dark path of self-destruction that he had once pulled her from.

"We had been together for a year, or…I don't know, it was all going so well, I don't think I even bothered keeping track…"

Kotonoha raised both hands and pressed them on the sticky cheeks of the girl, aligning the girl's red, puffy eyes with hers.

This girl's small mouth gaped between the squished outline of her face as Kotonoha looked upon her with resolute concern.

"What you're going through, I went through a lot of the same…but you know what my mistake was? I held it in. I had the same concern for others and very little for myself. It may sound selfish, but it's times like this when you need to take care of yourself more than anything. That's what I learned from this goof over her."

"Hey!"

"Give yourself time. It may seem like you won't be able to let go, but you will. If he ever came back, ask yourself, deep down, would you really want to remain with him? Because things will never be the same if you did. And when you think about it, a new beginning is much better than going back, after knowing that this may happen with him again. You remained faithful, you did your part, and that's all that matters."

"Yeah, good on you!" Eiichi assured. "Now do something else for a change. Something constructive you enjoy will take your mind off him in a heartbeat, if only for a while."

The girl broke her frightened gaze, holding back more crying.

"Th-Thank you…" she croaked and embraced Kotonoha again.

Kotonoha stroked her hair, "Tell your friends, there's no shame in it. They need you."

"O-Okay…I will…" she sniffled more and loosed herself from Kotonoha's figure. Wiping her eyes, she took another look at her two Samaritans. "I-I know you…you're Kotonoha…and you're Eiichi…" she turned her head from one to the other.

"Yeah, that's us," Eiichi smiled, not really expecting any random outbursts of fandom.

"I hear everyone talking about you…but I never thought…Wow…Kotonoha and Eiichi helped me…and I never thought I'd even be able to talk to you. You two really are heroes…"

"Yup, we're even thinking about starting a tee-shirt company," Eiichi smirked.

The girl giggled, "Is he always like that?"

"On both good and bad days," Kotonoha schmoozed.

"I'm right here…" Eiichi droned.

With now grateful, shimmering eyes, the girl looked at both of them, "Thank you, thank you so much…and if it's not too much to ask, could I contact you if I'm in trouble? I-I'm so sorry, if it's a problem."

"No-no! It's no trouble at all," Kotonoha fished for her cell phone.

"Thank you so much again!" the girl bowed. "And don't worry, I'll keep it between us. No one will know about this."

"We'd prefer that you did," Kotonoha smiled.

"I'll see you around! Bye!" and with that, she was off and around the corner.

The couple continued their passive walk up the curve.

"I'm mad at you…" Kotonoha's voice met Eiichi's ears.

"Oh come on, you forgave me before we even walked away from that," Eiichi poked his head again.

Kotonoha kept her calm reserve, "…I'm still mad at you…"

Eiichi snickered, "Okay…"


	2. Chapter 2 Trust

**Chapter 2: Trust**

Like usual, as of late, there was no hyperactive Kokoro to greet them as Kotonoha's front gate slid open in its slow, electronic method of monotonous presentation. This troubled Kotonoha most as Eiichi noticed, since he'd only witnessed Kokoro's tenacious excitement for a few minutes before her bright face turned to a grimace at the sight of him. Kotonoha and Eiichi padded up the drive path to her door and she withdrew her keys.

Inside, Kotonoha resounded perfunctorily, "We're home!" expecting the voice of her mother to call from around the modestly well-designed walls of her estate's interior. There was no immediate response as they kicked their shoes off and set them by the step. Eiichi took Kotonoha's coat and proceeded to remove his blazer when a man stepped into their view from the doorway.

It was Kotonoha's father, a rather tall, broad shouldered man with a staunch face of stress lines and appeal of pertinence. His somewhat tired eyes peered at the two blithely from behind a pair of box framed spectacles.

"Dad!" Kotonoha skidded forward to him.

"There's my Kotonoha," a gentle smile broke out on his creased mouth.

He had to kneel down a little, just in time to greet his eldest daughter, her arms flung up and around his shoulders.

"I thought you weren't back for another week!"

"Well, we had to close things out early, I have some extra time before I fly out again."

As Kotonoha stepped lightly from him, Mister Katsura's eyes greeted the sight of the young man stepping from the doorway.

Eiichi bowed, feeling like he was in one of those Navy maritime films. All consideration for immediate response to any topics that may ensue in conversation were neatly packed away in the quietest confines of his mind. Even if he picked up tells from Mister Katsura's output, which he would, he would politely keep them to himself.

"Katsura-san, it's good to see you again, sir," feeling very much like in a maritime film.

Eiichi had met Kotonoha's father only once before, a day before his own parents had been able to make it all the way from Okinawa. He figured it was not at one of the most ideal times, considering he had been laid out on yet another hospital bed, with twenty-seven stitches in his gut, still hazy from morphine injections.

"Kuzoka-san, it's good to see you as well," even though he only gave Eiichi a slow, informal nod, Eiichi was surprised by the amount of respect he could feel emanating from this man of business. He'd felt the same from him in the hospital, and it was just as bizarre then. He supposed it was being used to people looking on him in such a negative light, or maybe to do with their extreme differences in social standing. His and Kotonoha's situation must have caused the man to drop everything he was doing to come home and figure out just what was happening to his family, which Eiichi felt wouldn't make things look good for him either, and yet, this man seemed to hold him in such high regard. "I trust your wound has healed."

"Y-Yes sir. It's pretty much scarred over," Eiichi spoke timidly as he straitened out.

"Well that's good to know. I've never been a man of combat, but I had a friend that told me long ago that it's our scars that tell the best about who we are."

"That's very kind of you to say, sir."

"Eiichi, you don't have to keep calling him that," Kotonoha assured.

Eiichi's eyes looked from Kotonoha to her father, "W-Well…"

"I believe she's right Kuzoka-san. Maybe it's time we start working our way up to a more comfortable fashion of addressing each other."

"Yes sir– _I mean_ …"

"We'll work on it," waving an easy hand.

"Where's mom?" Kotonoha asked.

"Oh, she went out to get some things. I've just been watching the house and your sister," it had been hard to tell if Kokoro was around or not.

They stepped into the living room.

"Dad, have you had anything to eat yet?"

"Is it passed lunch time already? I only just made it home," a feeble excuse on his part.

Kotonoha chuckled, "I'll make some tea."

With loving thanks from her father, Kotonoha disappeared between the doors to the kitchen and Eiichi and Mister Katsura were left.

Mister Katsura turned to Eiichi and gestured idly to the lavish couch in the broad living room, "Please Kuzoka-san, have a seat, there's something I've been meaning to talk with you about."

Eiichi, with unnecessary caution, took his seat. Mister Katsura sat in the adjoining sofa and leaned back, likely tired from his trip home, smoothing the surfaces of the arm rests.

He spoke slowly, his calm voice dashed with notes of concern, "I want to speak with you on the matters of what occurred a few months ago. And of your relationship with my daughter."

Eiichi was getting nothing but respect and kind attention from this man, and still his hands tensed a little and he felt a cold rush through his body. Mister Katsura slowly rubbed his hand over the ridge of his jawline and up over the back of his neck.

"I have always been opposed to the idea of Kotonoha dating at her age, but I understand that things are not as they were in my day. Maybe I seem a bit too traditional, but I had originally hoped that she would reach that point in her life after her graduation. But of course, I'm expecting too much of myself, for a man who's only home so many times out of the year."

Eiichi kept silent and his eyes on the man, breaking contact only to remind himself the conversation was casual and not an interrogation.

"I want nothing more than for her to be happy and content. My hope was that she would find someone, a man, who could meet the needed criteria that would make him suitable for her endeavor," he couldn't help but speak like a businessman. "I sadly never got to meet the one she had been with beforehand. Kokoro has told me, in her own way mind you, that he was quite the gentleman. It was a shame that he met such a cruel fate, and at the hands of such a deranged person."

Eiichi had to keep quiet. If only this man knew he was only seeing the tip of the iceberg, but 'you only get out of things what you put in to them', and he had obviously been removed of the opportunity to put more time into his family. Of all the career paths Eiichi could choose, he had just placed businessman at the bottom of the list.

"However, the things that you have done for my daughter, despite the circumstances, reveal you to me as a man that is highly deserving of her favor, and from what I can tell, you have already received it."

Eiichi did not believe in the least that Mister Katsura knew exactly how _close_ Kotonoha and he had become. At the least, Kotonoha might've told her mother some things, things her mother in turn kept to herself, probably more so to save Eiichi's skin. But given the situation, he imagined that if Mister Katsura heard them later on, his response may not be as vehement as Eiichi imagined. Still, no way in hell was he going to be the one to tell him.

"I am willing to overlook my prior desires for her future, as long as you can remain with her."

As somewhat liberating as this was, Eiichi couldn't help feeling like his freedoms were being limited.

"I will sir. I'd bet my life on it," forgetting the awkward comforts of their new name basis.

Mister Katsura only smiled, "It seems you already have."

Kotonoha reappeared from the kitchen, toting a platter that might as well have been some kind of fine china that probably cost more than half what Torio paid on the monthly rent. This was Mister Katsura's cue to immediately change the subject matter.

"So Eiichi-san, you have me at a bit of a loss," was his dry jest, "What line of business is your father in?"

Kotonoha placed the platter on the surface of the coffee table before them and proceeded to pour them each a cup. There were pastries and rice balls on the platter as well.

"Um, my dad? He uh, does government work," Kotonoha handed him his cup and his eyes met hers in a smile with thankful reply.

"Oh, nasty business to be in. It has been my fear that the economy and political workings of Japan have been in dire need of change and restoration for quite some time."

After serving, Kotonoha sat quietly next to Eiichi with her cup and saucer in hand.

"Actually sir—Oji-san, it's the American government," it feeling strange for him to be correcting the man.

"Oh, is he in communications?"

"Uh, actually…he's military," Eiichi shifted in his seat.

"A military man, is he a native of Japan? Your Japanese is so fluent, I would've never taken you for a foreigner."

He could feel Kotonoha's hand stroking the side of his arm, urging him forward, "Actually, he is. He moved to the states and later enlisted when he was about my age. It's been his career ever since. The US Government had him stationed at a base here in Japan when I was very little. I'm not a native, but I've lived here most of my life."

"Well that is very interesting. Would you mind if I asked what his background in the military has been?"

Eiichi had actually hoped he wouldn't ask this, "Um, he served in the Gulf War as a Marine combat mechanic. Then he became a reservist so he could go to college. After graduating, he was put through an officer's training program, and now they have him working on base in Okinawa."

Mister Katsura widened his gaze a little, something Eiichi thought was nigh improbable, "Oh, he's that kind of military man," with a subtle nod over his cup of tea.

"Um, yes sir."

"That could explain your methods of addressing me. It seems more and more there are youths with not nearly your amount of respectability."

"It's only out of habit," was really the least he could say.

"Well I certainly hope I get to meet your father one day. He sounds like a very interesting man with some interesting stories, and I've heard many in my travels. Forgive me, I actually have a few associates of mine I meet up with and we always compete to see who has the wildest situation to present to one another," Eiichi assumed this must have been over drinks as well, something military, travelers, writers and business were all connected to in their own special ways.

1There was a small voice that resonated from the hall, "Papa, is onee-chan home?"

Everyone had looked to see the little figure walking into the light from the hall that was Kokoro. Her little eyes scanned the room and found Kotonoha, seated on the couch next to Eiichi. Instead of a glare, she mainly gazed at him a moment and then made her way to Kotonoha to give her a hug. Then she wandered around, over to Mister Katsura's side of the table. Eiichi picked up heavy messages of concern from both Kotonoha and Mister Katsura for the child, whom it seemed had been the witness of only her sister's tragedy. To them, it was so quiet when she was around now, all the bright and colorful tones had been seized away. In her mind, Eiichi found, there was only a dull void of contemplation that surpassed any typical strain that a child in her years could surmount. Someone she thought she knew had gone missing from her life, and her sister had suffered the horrors of taking a life. All of these things, were all she knew.

Kokoro approached her father and he hugged her, even though he'd been with her most of the day, she still needed to be surrounded by the affections of the one's she loved. Eiichi tilted his head up, blinking, and Kotonoha rested a hand on his arm. Kokoro trotted away into the hall and came back with some fixtures of paper in her arms and began working with them in a portion of the room furthest from their meeting space.

Mister Katsura continued the conversation with a twinge of exhaustion, "So, how have matters been in your part of the world Eiichi? Kotonoha tells me you'll be graduating soon."

"Um, yes…" Eiichi croaked, his throat felt dry and he took a sip from his cup. "I'm still thinking of what career field I want to aim for. Kotonoha has been a big help in giving me some ideas, but for now I want to see some low level employment before making any major decisions."

"It's good for a man like yourself to start out getting his hands dirty. If you ever decide on management, you'll know what to expect from your subordinates."

"That's what my dad always tells me…"

"I guess great minds do think alike. Have you considered any recent opportunities?"

Eiichi knew immediately what he was hinting to, "Actually, that is something I have been thinking of. I understand a corporation you are in league with has shares in a number of the auto manufacturing companies in Tokyo."

"That is true…" he said with a glance at Kotonoha, that she returned with a look of cordial admittance that Mister Katsura was not at all use to, "I suppose I could talk with a few friends of mine to have you put in as a line worker."

"Oji-san, that would be enough. I would be in your debt."

"There is no need for formality. You are a young man, just starting out, and employment is becoming more difficult in these trying times. While our economists speak that a coming crisis will likely not meet our market, I still see many grabbing for positions like beggars, seeking work in any field that will accept them. A man in my position should do whatever is necessary, especially if it is for a man in yours. Make no mistake, I have done the same for a few others like yourself."

"Sir, I am grateful."

"As you should be, but I do not need you to tell me that. I will only do what I can. However, I could not see a man of your resolve simply working in auto manufacturing the remainder of your life. You should certainly give a higher education some serious thought."

"It has crossed my mind…" Eiichi breathed, feeling a nudge from Kotonoha to signify an 'I told you so.' He looked at her as she sipped from her cup, her eyes turned up at the ceiling.

They heard the front door click open and the rustling of plastic grocery bags.

"I'm home!" a kindly woman's voice sounded from the door path.

In a few moments, Miss Katsura appeared with her catch of the day in both hands.

"Mom, is there any more you need help with?" Kotonoha said as both she and Eiichi stood.

"Oh no, this is merely for tonight since your father is back. Hello Eiichi," she nodded with a smile while making her way to the kitchen. "Dinner will be ready in an hour, so please continue what you were discussing until then."

Dinner with the Katsura's was a bit more formal than what Eiichi was used to, but the conversation was still lively. The idle exchanges began with Miss Katsura talking of some interests she had in the small business bakeries in the area, how the bread was surprisingly good quality and that she'd been going out of her routine to visit a few. There was extensive mention of Kotonoha and Eiichi's status at their school and inquiry as to how they were handling all the attention, in which they modestly replied, while taking turns, that they knew little of how to handle such a broad social life and were just doing their best with remaining courteous. Mister Katsura occasionally inserted here and there with a prolonged story from one of his travels that strangely had relevance to nearly any topic the group could come up with. Kokoro sat calmly next to her mother, eating slowly and only responding when asked the usual questions about friends and school.

Desert ended with the general complements to Miss Katsura on the food. After more talking with Kotonoha's long winded family, and saying goodnight with more thank yous from Eiichi to Miss Katsura for the elegant meal, he was guided to the front door by Kotonoha and Mister Katsura.

"I'll have my driver take you back home and Kotonoha can accompany you if she wishes."

"Thank you again for your talk," Eiichi bowed.

"And you will let me know when your father decides to visit from Okinawa?"

"Yes, and if you'd like, I'll tell him about our conversation and that you would like to meet with him."

"I would be most pleased. I had a friend of mine who was in the Army a long time ago, but many of the stories he had to tell sounded more like national espionage than service and travel."

"Well I promise, my dad has somewhat different stories to tell, and I'm sure he'll look forward to your meeting."

"Until then, have a safe trip."

Mister Katsura stepped away as Kotonoha and Eiichi had turned to get their shoes.

"Excuse me…" Kokoro had walked over to their place out of the light of the living room, and stood in front of Eiichi.

Eiichi had been leaning over, tying one of his shoes, propped against the raise when he looked up at the quiet face. Her placid eyes fixed on him, her arms hung loosely behind her back, standing still. Slowly, without a word, he knelt down before her.

She stretched out one hand and in it was a bracelet. She had taken three long strands of coarse thread that gave off the appeal of wheat or burlap in their faded and rugged beige hues, and had woven them together, tying the ends off in knots. Then she had tied the ends off in a large, loose bow. Attached to the unconstrained oval were cuttings of paper with green leaves, yellow peddles, and dark brown centers, fashioned into sunflowers and woven into the threads with fine, green wire, accompanied by two tiny ladybug ornaments.

"Is this for me?" he looked.

Her hand remained in the space between them. The output of this child was one of caution, only making a decision she wanted to be sure of. Trust was all she wanted, for someone to not fade away. He took the bracelet gently and worked it on to his wrist. It was a little top heavy and the bow hung down if he raised his hand.

"Thank you…I promise, I'll take good care of it."

And then Kokoro did something he was not expecting. She stepped forward and wrapped her little arms around his neck. For a moment, Eiichi didn't know how to respond. He inhaled, trembling in her grasp, and then raised his hands, one with the bracelet on, and rested them on her back. He had nothing to be sorry for, and yet he found himself longing for her forgiveness.

The little girl released him, stepped back and bowed to him, "Thank you…for taking care of Onee-chan…" Then she padded off into the hallway.

Eiichi stayed down on one knee as Kotonoha watched him.

"I think we're seeing some progress."

"Yeah…" he got up. "Let's go…" the browns, greens and yellows of the bracelet merged together in his blurring vision.

Kotonoha placed a hand on his back, gently leading him out the door, "I know…"

On the ride back, Kotonoha had managed to change the subject to something that would take Eiichi's mind off things. Within minutes, he was talking at her pace. The street lamps floated past outside the heavily tinted windows. Eiichi began seeing more recognizable structures as the limo pulled into his neighborhood. When it rolled up to the curve, Eiichi looked through the sliding passenger panel and thanked the driver, and they got out.

"I hope you don't start feeling on edge like that around my dad all the time, I thought you might be able to tell if he was kidding with you," Kotonoha said as they walked up to his door.

"In a way. The pressure of getting to talk with your dad is still enough to do that though, but that's alright, you get to meet my mom when she and dad come back from base," Eiichi brightened up.

"I imagine she might be nice."

"Where do you think I get my violent side?"

"B-But your dad."

"Oh, he's a teddy bear!" he let out, but he could feel Kotonoha getting anxious, "It's okay, she's more generous if anything."

"I hope so…" Kotonoha clasped her hands.

He smoothed up to her, his face close, "If she makes you coffee or tea with alcohol in it, don't ask, just drink it."

He gave her a lengthy goodnight kiss, figuring if the limo driver saw it, it would likely be mums the word. Their lips parted with a gentle smack.

"I'll remember that," she said.

Eiichi opened the door, but waited for Kotonoha to get back to the limo. She gave him a little wave before climbing in, that he returned. The limo drove away and Eiichi shut the door behind him.

"There he is! I trust your being out late means you were over at Kotonoha's place," Torio greeted him as Eiichi stepped into the living room.

"Yeah, the whole family was under the roof this time," Eiichi, a little tired, set his tote bag on the couch and sat down. He took his ecig out and began puffing on it.

"Oh, Mister Katsura was home."

"Yeah, something about a contract he needed to look over before continuing with things."

Torio grabbed a bottle of water he'd left on the coffee table, "That man's desperate to be with his family I imagine. Is he anything like dad?"

"He really wants to talk to him actually. He's interested in dad's background, at least what he's willing to tell."

"Sounds like he had some rowdy times at our age, anything like dad in that sense?"

"Oh no, no one's as rowdy as dad was."

They both laughed at this.

"Well it looks like they kept you long enough."

Eiichi chuckled, "Yeah, dinner was…different."

"All that posh and silverware appeal? 'Kuzoka-san, I dare say, you have a smidgeon of what seems to be powdered cheddar on your lapel, hmm, indubitably.'"

Eiichi smiled and took another drag, "A little, but they're not the pompous type. I suppose, it's tradition."

"Something I can get behind. I never thought you'd be in to Home and Garden though, what's that?" Torio gestured at Eiichi's hand.

Eiichi lifted it and turned it about, staring. The bracelet, he'd forgotten he was still wearing it.

"A promise…"

Torio eyed the young man sprawled out on the couch as he gazed, lost in thought, but said nothing after the fact.

Eiichi calmly rested the arm on his leg, "So what's your day been like?"

"Oh…" Torio shook his head, amused, "Yoko-chan will not leave me alone."

"Her again?"

"Yeah, yeah…we dated a little and it was…fun…"

"Maybe you should talk with her more. What's wrong with it becoming a regular thing?"

Torio laughed somewhat nervously, "I don't know if regular is what I had been aiming for."

"Oh really, I never would've guessed. C'mon, it would be a nice change of pace for you."

"Thanks for the advice little brother, but I'm kinda' set in my ways."

"Oh give it a rest man."

"Alright, let's hear it from the relationship guru."

"All I'm sayin' is…"

With some minor bickering between the two, Torio sticking to his guns and Eiichi being too worn out to continue trying to console his brother's flighty mind, they settled on a truce of sorts to continue their discussion at a later date and called it a night.

 **AN:** Whoa, lots of feels all over the place, I'm feeling pretty drained over here and like I need a drink. I didn't expect this to get so heavy. I promise things will get lighter in the next chapter. Wrote this while listening to "The Path of the Traveller" by Van Larkins on loop. I was very odd about some of the etiquette in this scene because I only know what I was able to find and what I've seen in other anime, so let me know if I made any mistakes. Expect the next chapter this Friday.

1 "The Path of the Traveller" by Van Larkins


	3. Chapter 3 Making Friends

**Chapter 3: Making Friends**

1School the next day played through in a calm lull of hordes of Sakakino uniforms filling the halls after every first bell and then retreating into classrooms after every second. Lunch time came around before Eiichi realized it. He was up and out of his seat and ready for his afternoon routine: meet with the ebony haired, lovely vixen that had stolen his heart, one Katsura Kotonoha, accompany her to the famous and infamous roof of the school, enjoy a well-made lunch, which he no longer felt the need to keep emergency services on speed dial for, and then join aforementioned vixen for a beautiful walk home, and likely a little playtime before 'the cat' got home from work. It was a sunny Saturday-half-day, the weather was just starting to warm up, and everything was right with the world.

He did not have to walk far through the mess of black on white Sakakino uniforms and kaleidoscope of emotions before she met him in the hall.

"Roof?" she asked as he approached, feeling much the same way.

"Funny, I was thinking the same thing."

Meet with ebony haired vixen, check.

"Oh, I just remembered I need to do something before I forget."

The plan's a failure! Reroute coordinates! Dive! Dive! Dive!

"And I have to meet with the student council to go over a few things."

"Swell…" he muttered out the corner of his mouth. Could he get a single smooth day? With an exasperated sigh, "So what's the first thing you need to do?"

"I have some books that I need to drop off at the library before they're overdue, if I forget today, I might end up paying a fee, so we should do that before eating. Student Council won't be for another half hour."

Oh good! They'd have to rush through lunch as well. He had wishful thoughts that this was some kind of cruel joke she was playing, but her hand gently tugging on his sleeve, with a smile that could melt ice cream, was a sign that he was in for the long haul.

It was thanks to Kotonoha and several study sessions with her, that Eiichi was no longer a stranger to the school library. Though being a lover of books, mainly the classics, he usually bought his titles online, used, or occasionally rented from one of the local, non-school centered libraries.

Upon making it to their first destination, the library greeted them in its oak wood fashion of sophistication. Kotonoha began rummaging in her bag and produced a few hardbound titles. The library, as always, was pretty much empty, say for a few seniors at tables, prepping for exams. Eiichi couldn't help smiling because things were looking good for him in that department.

They approached the front desk, but there was no one present.

"Hmm, Ashikaga-kun must be busy…" Kotonoha peered around the rows of shelving.

Then a short, somewhat skinny male student, in a pair of large, rounded glasses, appeared heading toward the desk, his arms straining with a tall stack of large text books. As he approached the desk, his eyes set on Kotonoha, and Eiichi noticed his cheeks turn a tinge of pink before retracting back to their pastel shade like a fighting fish.

"Hello Ashikaga-kun," Kotonoha smiled.

"Katsura-san, more returns?" the boyish looking student clamored behind the desk and heaved the books down in an empty space.

At the moment, his output was mainly focused on Kotonoha. Eiichi knew Ashikaga had noticed him, but he seemed to be pretending like he wasn't even there. Fond attraction for her was the first thing Eiichi had picked up, and this wasn't anything new. It may have bothered Eiichi a few times before when he caught a guy eyeballing Kotonoha when she wasn't looking, with emotions pointing at every erotic imagining probable, but he learned to curb his overprotective nature for the sake of her peace of mind and their reputation. It wasn't easy having to know just what people wanted at all times. However, Ashikaga's output hovered in the safe, comfortable regions of exceeding respect, admiration and passion, only momentarily touching the edges of sensuality before retracting fearfully back.

"I'm sorry for the wait, we're pretty busy today," Ashikaga neatly arranged a few items on the desk.

"Yeah, you got a real blow out sale here," Eiichi said, taking another look around.

Eiichi felt a flush of distain, and he thought he saw Ashikaga's eyebrows furrow a little at his only minimally sarcastic comment, still without looking at him.

Kotonoha continued unwarily, "I thought I might have to renew. There's been a few things going on, and I was afraid I would forget, but I managed to find time to finish them."

"Well we're coming to the end of the school year, even non graduating students can find themselves with their hands full," Ashikaga said as Kotonoha handed him the books and he proceeded to check them, taking his time, thumbing through the pages to check for anything left inside, though this was something he could have done later.

Eiichi could understand the tense attraction for Kotonoha, she was after all, a very beautiful girl that stood out even without intending to, and her strengthened character had served to only make her more alluring to others, though Eiichi picked up that this well hidden attraction had been going on a lot longer. What was so puzzling was this severe distain directed at him. Sure there was jealousy, there was always jealousy, but it had always been shallow. This one however, burned with a deep dislike for him. Maybe it had been Kotonoha's influence on Eiichi, but he thought he'd try to lighten the mood. He normally wouldn't bother, because people could be so set in their beliefs.

"So, a job in the library," he fumbled. "Sounds pretty even keel, quiet, a little moving around, pretty laid back huh?"

"Actually it can be pretty demanding," Ashikaga sent him a blank glance, curtly swiping a book across a barcode scanner, the machine making a brief clank. "What you see in here is not what it seems. We have to keep records, files in order, make sure the shelves are arranged correctly, and the spaces clean."

' _Jeez, sorry for asking._ '

"Well still, you enjoy it, right?"

"I supposed I do," not looking at Eiichi again.

Kotonoha, just starting to feel a change in the air, made a polite insertion, "Ashikaga-san has been working here ever since he started at Sakakino. Because I visit here so much, I saw him practically every day and we became good acquaintances."

Yep, that would be it, Eiichi was, yet again, intruding on another acquaintance of hers.

"Oh, forgive me! Eiichi, this is Ashikaga Yuuki. Ashikaga-kun, this is my boyfriend, Kuzoka Eiichi."

Eiichi bowed to Yuuki, feeling odd that he was the first to do so, being the oldest between the two of them.

"Yes I've heard," Yuuki bowed formally, but only out of politeness.

Too much like a broken lava lamp that only knew two hues, Eiichi observed, somewhat humored, as Yuuki's output changed back and forth from dreamy blues whenever Kotonoha spoke, to boiling reds at the mere mention of him or the sound of his voice. Yuuki was quite annoyed with him, to say the least. He decided to keep his mouth shut before he started getting dizzy.

"Alright, that's everything Katsura-san, are you going to rent anything today?"

"No thank you, I have a Council meeting to be at, but we might come by some other time."

"Well I look forward to seeing you then," 'you' as in her, without the tagalong.

"Have a nice day," Kotonoha bowed and started out.

"See ya," Eiichi raised one hand casually.

Eiichi could swear when Kotonoha had her back turned, Yuuki had been glaring at him.

* * *

Lunch before Kotonoha's meeting was the one time Eiichi felt he had a minute to breathe, finally on the roof.

"No, no way…" Kotonoha shook her head, a piece of salmon clutched between the hashi in her hands.

"I'm not kidding," Eiichi assured.

"Use it in a sentence then."

"'Gee, it has been getting quite _darkle_ lately.'"

"That doesn't even sound right, like you're quoting something from a story book."

"It's a word, I'm not making this up."

"Okay, what's another?"

"Natiform…"

"What could that possibly mean?"

"'My good sir, your wife seems to have a quite rotund natiform.'"

"So uh, body?"

"Actually no, that's not right," correcting himself. "Um, it's supposed to resemble what you think it means."

"So something that resembles a body…"

"Nope, a part of the body," he smiled. "I said rotund."

She looked at him, perplexed.

"I could see that you have a pretty nice natiform if I lifted up the back of your skirt."

Her eyes got wide, "You… _jerk_." She swatted him on the arm while he laughed. "It figures you'd make a joke like that…" shaking her head again, trying to hold back a smile. "Hey, we should go on a trip sometime this summer," she looked up from her bento.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, to celebrate your graduation. You've been studying an awful lot."

"Well where did you have in mind?"

"Take a guess…"

"Onna Beach…" he remembered.

Her gratification was a single look with her mystifying eyes.

"We could visit my parents!" he exclaimed.

"Okay, now I don't know if I wanna' go…" she took a frantic bite of rice.

"Okay, okay, I know that was a cruel joke I played on you about my mom."

"That's okay, you can go without me," she said nervously. "You can tell them it was my idea, I'll just stay here, where it's safe."

"I promise, they'll be elated to see you, they practically know enough about you already."

"You've been talking with your dad?"

"He calls once in a while. Come on, I had to do it, so do you. Except we'll be on vacation, so it'll be fun."

His encouragement worked, she smiled, "Okay."

A somewhat warming breeze crossed over the roof, Eiichi had already finished his lunch and watched intently as she was finishing up the last few bites of hers. Something had been on his mind as of late, something that only he could have concern for.

"Um…is there anything that sort of…bothers you about me?"

He was surprised that it had taken him this long to notice while they had been dating all this time.

Kotonoha looked up from her bento at him, confused, "No, I thought you might know if there was. Have I been doing that?"

"Well that's just it, I know all the time."

He felt her curiosity patting at him, trying to figure out just what he was getting at, "You're acting pretty self-conscious for someone who claims to not care about what others think."

"I care about what you think. I mean, I can tell what you're feeling at all times. Most people would feel pretty invaded by that."

She had finished her bento and set it down next to her, "I still don't see what the problem is. If I had thought this was an issue, we would've had this discussion some time ago."

"I'm just asking if it bothers you."

She turned his way, her knee touching his, "If I were a person who practiced dishonesty, then I suppose it would bother me. Do you understand now what you're telling me by asking this question?"

Head down, he insecurely smoothed his hand over his knuckles.

"You have a gift Eiichi, you may not see it that way, but I do. It may not be the reason I'm with you, but it's got something to do with why we're together. If you can tell what people are feeling, that does sound pretty one sided," she imagined it got pretty lonely as well, "but that's only more a reason for you to talk things out. You coaxed me into doing it once…" She placed a hand on his arm, causing him to look deeply back into those mystifying eyes, "On the other side of things, I am not worried about your honesty. I know I may have placed my trust in people that didn't deserve it before, but now having someone I really can trust has taught me better."

She leaned forward and kissed him on the corner of his mouth, a signal for him to meet her the rest of the way, their lips intertwining. He placed a hand on the back of her neck, her hand rested on his thy and gave it a squeeze. They parted gently and looked at each other, their faces close.

She picked up the bentos and her bag, and stood, "And now I have to go or I'm going to be late. You think you can hang on without me for an hour?"

"'B-But senpai, I thought we were inseparable. What ever will I do without your kind presence to comfort me?'" he kidded.

She smiled at this, "You don't have to wait for me if you want to head home," and bent down to give him another peck before walking towards the door. On her way, she stopped and turned, "Were you just looking at my natiform?"

"I may've been," he said coolly.

With another smile, she turned, creating just the right amount of flourish in her skirt to give him a peak. Ruby lace, must've been new.

There was one other thing concerning him, what was he going to do for a whole hour? With so much time and no idea how to use it, he stood and headed to the door.

Eiichi wandered the very vacant halls of the school, not really headed in any particular direction. He came by three guys in a little group outside a club room, talking amongst themselves. One called out to him and he stepped over. It was the usual, 'Hey, how's it goin',' 'What it is?' and such. Later, he approached a three way section of the hall, where he stopped and actually considered which direction he wanted to go in. Outside, he passed through a courtyard with a few students seated beneath sakura trees, buds just beginning to form on their dark branches. A few minutes later, he was standing in front of the school gym.

"I don't think I've ever gone in this building…"

He pushed the heavy tin door open to step in to an empty basketball court, the stale smells of sweat, rubber and bleach greeted his nose. If no one was in, they probably wouldn't mind him looking around, not like he had anything else to do. He had walked out to the center of the court when he saw a rather short girl step out from another set of doors with a large box in her arms. Her purple hair was tied down in two long tails, the hems on the gym shorts of her 'Sakakino Academy Basketball Team' jersey fluttered about a pair of bike shorts that clung tight to her thighs, when she stopped. She didn't say anything immediately and just stared at the guy standing in the middle of the court, hands in his pockets.

"Practice won't be for another hour…" her voice formal.

"Makes sense, don't want people showing up for their other clubs all sweaty."

"But we don't really let outsiders watch. Are you waiting for someone?"

"Yes, I am, but she's not here."

"Well that would make sense if you're waiting for her."

That one was good and he couldn't help smiling, "No, no," waving a frivolous hand, "she's in a different club."

"Is she on the basketball team?"

"Not to my knowledge," though she might look good in the jersey.

The girl continued on her way to a side of the court, "Well, if she's not on the team, then why are you here?"

"No real reason, just looking around."

"You must have a lot of time to kill," she set the box down by a sideline.

"Yeah, it would seem that way."

The girl stood and looked toward the set of doors she just exited from, concerned about something, and back at him, "Well while you're busy killing that time, you wanna' help me?"

"I don't see why not."

"Come on," she started back to the doors and Eiichi followed.

Upon getting closer to her, Eiichi did not really pickup anything interesting from her output, she was pretty focused on what she was doing, though a little curious about him.

They stepped into a storage room that had been filled with sports paraphernalia. Foam kendo mat squares were stacked against the walls, volleyballs, baseball mits and bats, were all cluttered along the walls and in the center. Eiichi nearly tripped over a rolled up volleyball net near the door as the girl, now with a more brisk step in her walk, made her way over to a rack of basketballs.

"Could you get that box of towels over there?" she pointed.

There wasn't much talk between the two of them as they made repeated transitions from the closet to the court. Before, she seemed more simple about what she was doing, but as soon as she had invited Eiichi to assist, she picked up her pace considerably.

"You're surprisingly handy, you're not even breaking a sweat! Do you play any sports?" she said as they reentered the gym with boxes in hand.

Not really sure how to take the 'surprisingly' part, "I don't think 'play' is the word I would use, but in a manner of speaking. So is that everything?"

"I think that's it," swatting dust off her jersey.

Before he could take his leave, a much taller, sturdy looking girl stepped through the set of doors. Her head of brown, full bodied hair would have hung down to her shoulders, had it not been done up in a ponytail. She filled out the Sakakino jersey with a stronger, somewhat masculine quality than the other girl.

"Roka, did you finish getting everything moved?" her voice with a touch of sternness.

The girl, apparently Roka, suffered a wave of nervousness. She probably shouldn't have asked him to help her out.

"Yes senpai, all done!" likely hoping the other had not noticed.

As the larger girl approached, Eiichi figured it wasn't that she was so much taller as Roka was shorter, she met him at about the same height.

"You know you shouldn't be asking for help from people not on the team, it makes us look bad," oddly lax about this, and not really seeming to care that Eiichi heard.

"Um, I…" Roka stuttered.

Roka's senpai took one look at Eiichi and pointed apathetically, "Oh hey, you're that guy."

Eiichi nodded, admitting to himself he was beginning to enjoy this, "Yeah, I'm kinda' that guy."

"So what brings you over to our side of the school?"

"Just wandering, I'm waiting for someone to get out of a meeting."

"Oh," she sang, "would this certain someone be 'her'?"

Eiichi chuckled, "You're pretty quick on the uptake."

"Nah, it was a lucky guess."

"Who? Who is he?" Roka asked.

"Only the 'knight in shining armor' himself, Kuzoka Eiichi, the one who rescued that girl from falling to her death some months back, just to wind up with that same girl saving _his_ butt from getting killed. It was all over the school news, I think there was even a section about it in the city issue as well. Though I never took you for mister tall, dark and handsome," she flirted.

"That was you!?" Roka turned.

"Ah, please, don't give me anymore of that or I'll start getting used to it."

Eiichi could sense that the taller girl was leaving some details out for his sake, so as not to bring the mood down. For as playful as she was, she was surprisingly considerate.

"Don't be so modest, you're a third year, right? After graduation, our titles will only follow us so far."

"You have a point there."

The two seniors stood neck and neck, tossing idle topics back and forth.

"My name is Ashikaga Chie. I'm captain of the third year basketball team, and this is my kouhai, Kitsuregawa Roka," they bowed.

Eiichi returned in kind, "It's a pleasure to meet you. Ashikaga, would you be in any way related to Ashikaga Yuuki?"

Suddenly Roka's output plummeted into embarrassed and irritated affections at the mention of the name.

"Yeah! You've met my little brother?"

"Ugh, that girly creep…" Roka blurted, without intending to.

Chie and Eiichi both looked at her and her face grew beet red.

"You'll have to forgive this one," Chie jabbed a thumb at her. "She and my brother had a bit of a run in recently. They're both pretty careless, so it figures they'd end up clashing together sooner or later."

"Yeah, your brother is um…pretty dedicated."

"Yeah, so is Roka here, and I can only wonder why neither of them have acted on my instruction yet," giving Roka a side glance.

"No way!" Roka blurted again, her fists balled up. "No way am I going out with that pervert!"

"Well, time will tell," Chie smiled.

Eiichi tried to imagine that gangly, serious character with the specs from earlier with this spunky, petit sports girl in front of him, and surprising enough, it didn't seem like such a bad match.

He eyed Roka, deciding to have some fun, "Yeah, I could see it."

"Ew! Why is this happening to _mee_!?" Roka buried her face in her hands.

"I like this guy!" Chie burst out. "We should work together. Roka and Yuuki wouldn't stand a chance," again, talking as if the subject of the matter wasn't present.

"Good idea."

Chie padded the pockets of her gym shorts, likely looking for her cellphone, "I'll give you my number, shoot me a text and we can talk more."

Eiichi only had a few numbers in the contacts on his cell phone, and of them, the only two he contacted the most were Kotonoha and Torio. It would be a nice change to have some new ones.

While Chie was sounding out digits, Roka stood by, flustered, overpowered, and embarrassed to a high degree. She stiffened up and stormed away, "I'm gonna' see if anyone else is showing up for practice…"

"Okay, you do that~" Chie hollered whimsically. Turning back to Eiichi, "Yeah, practice will be starting soon and you've gotta' meet up with your sweetheart."

"Oh it is that time," looking at his phone after clicking save.

"Better go before she pummels you, if she is that type."

"A little."

Chie began trotting away, "See ya around, hero!"

* * *

Eiichi rounded the corner just as students were stepping out of the council meeting room. He made his way up to the doorway. Just then, as he was approaching, he received a return text from Chie. She must have snuck off to get her phone during practice.

'Here's Roka and Yuuki's numbers,' with a winking smiley. 'When she finds out I sent you her number, she'll flip! XD If we keep this up, things might start getting somewhere =3, so stay in touch, alright?'

Making a mental note of this, he put his phone away. When he approached, he saw Kotonoha stepping out with Otome following behind her. Kotonoha turned to face her, just as Eiichi made it to them.

"We need to see about getting that taken care of, okay?"

"I cannot guarantee that we'll have it done in such a short amount of time," Otome was frazzled.

"It's plenty of time, and we have more than enough people available. I don't know why this is an issue, if you distribute the work evenly, you'll see results faster, how many times do I have to say it?"

Something must've happened in there where Otome got her ass handed to her. She saw Eiichi and her eyes blinked, looking about timidly, her emotions of desire taking over. Though she was excited at the sudden sight of him, she'd rather he not see her, especially with her caution toward Kotonoha.

"Um…hello Kuzoka…" keeping with his last name.

"Otome," he nodded.

Kotonoha looked between the two of them, "O-kay, so you got that right?"

"I got it, okay!" turning on Kotonoha.

"Good," Kotonoha looked at Eiichi. "So, decided to stick around?"

"Yup, come on, let's go. We still got some daylight left," he took her hand and tugged lightly on it.

Kotonoha snickered, "Okay, jeez, down boy."

They both walked off, but they didn't see the fuming Otome, fists clenching at her sides.

* * *

2The television in Torio and Eiichi's living room hummed with the voices and scenery of an evening show featuring a group of witty diagnosticians. Eiichi was stretched out on the couch, one arm raised and rested on the armrest behind his head, legs crossed and extended, eyes fixated on the blue lit screen, taking the occasional long drag from his vape pen and exhaling a white plume of cinnamon and cream scented exhaust.

In the view from the kitchen, Kotonoha labored about in a calm lull, preparing a meal for three, as it was Torio would be arriving home from work within the hour. She occasionally gazed over at the screen to take in what was occurring. Many who knew of Kotonoha's cooking abilities would find this scene rather disturbing, though Torio, Eiichi's personal master chef, had effectively taken her under his wing as his student in culinary works. That Eiichi was not sweating bullets at this very moment was a sign of her vast improvement.

On the television, it was apparent that a detrimental discovery had taken place because there were coughing and spitting noises followed by eerie, synthetic music, and then commercials.

"I never understand exactly what they're talking about," Kotonoha voiced to Eiichi, "only that when they begin using those long, polysyllable medical terms, it usually means something bad."

"Same here, but they're always explaining it to the patient, so we get to hear what it really means," Eiichi said, not removing his eyes from the screen.

After an elongated five minutes of nearly endless ads, either about one cleaning solution or another, and the sale of the latest model of a sleek sports car going on at your nearest auto dealer, the show was back on.

" _It's akinetopsia…_ " a gravelly voice sounded from the screen.

"See, like that one," Kotonoha raised her spatula a moment.

Eiichi laughed, "Yeah, I think their writers must be actual diagnosticians, or they have a group of them they consult to come up with these wacky dispositions and ways to nearly kill the patient two or three times before they get anywhere. Smells good by the way."

"Thanks, this is something new I thought I'd try."

Eiichi had offered to help her a few times in the past, but she had always insisted on being left to her devises, so he didn't bother anymore. Yet, whenever Torio taught her, he felt like the odd man out, with nothing to do.

"Oh, we're in for a surprise tonight then. You're moving on your own now."

"Yeah, Torio said it would be a good idea now for me to pick something and try it."

Twenty minutes later, the show ended and Eiichi changed the channel to a special on lunar phases. Kotonoha was no longer at the stove and had a cutting board laid out, mincing herbs.

"So what was with that whole situation between you and Otome earlier today?"

"Ah, I have no idea…"

"Come on Eiichi, I know you can tell, so spill it," a playful note of interrogation in her voice.

"Ah…" Eiichi droned, considering a way of putting things so to not set Kotonoha off. They had typically been honest with each other on matters like this, so he decided to be up front. "I'm pretty sure she has a thing for me…"

"Really? How long has this been going on?" a gentle note of concern in her voice.

"Well at least since the festival. I wish you could've seen how I handled the situation with the 'rest area', I mopped the floor with 'em, but I guess it made an impression on her," though Eiichi would never have been as flirty with Kotonoha around. Technically she had seen, part of it at least, but they were both dealing with their own problems at the time.

"Well that's good to hear it went so well. I didn't really like what they were doing either. I never imagined that Otome could be capable of something like that."

"All kinds of people, Koto. They're hard to spot."

Kotonoha looked up from the shredded leaves on the cutting board and peered at the boy laying on the couch, a boy she could remember, when they first met, guiding to an infirmary bed as a similar place of rest, "Eiichi, you've been acting strange today…"

"Ha! I'm the embodiment of strange, what are you talking about?"

"Stranger than usual. Has anything been bothering you?" Much like Torio, she had been developing a knack for reading her rambunctious counterpart.

"You mean aside from what we talked about?"

"Kind of, actually it's more to do with everything. The last two days you've seemed, I don't know, off. Have you been ill?"

"I haven't noticed anything, maybe it's all in your head. Maybe it's a turnaround and it's your thinking there was something wrong that caused me to think _you_ had a problem," he prodded jokingly. "Maybe you have the problem and you're projecting it on to me, hmm?"

Ignoring his mind games, "Hmm, well there's a full moon out tonight. I thought I heard something once about the effects of a full moon on people. That when it's out, the traffic accident reports go up, animals behave strangely, and people even become more aggressive."

"And you're bringing this up because…"

"Well, it may be that it has an effect on your abilities. Have things seemed different at all lately for you?"

The events of the day had been a nice step out of his normal routine, maybe her advice to him was beginning to shine and she simply didn't recognize it. Or maybe it was all the up and down from that day that had him a little worn out, like he had become too used to his routine. He appreciated her concern greatly, but was still lost as to what she meant by his acting strange, being that it was simply true that he was a particularly strange guy. Maybe they'd reached some new ground in their relationship, one of those things that changes and you don't realize until you notice it.

And then he got an idea. "Yes, as a matter of fact, they have…" he got up from the couch and lifted his hands slightly, swiveling his head from one to the other, wide eyed, making like he was analyzing his fingers with deep contemplation, "I've had these sensations coursing through my body all day. My thoughts have been so compulsive, it feels…it feels as if they're not my own…" he made his voice as airy as possible, with inflections of incomprehensible fear. Each step he took toward the busy Kotonoha became more like a tiny lunge, leaning forward as dramatically as possible.

She looked up a moment from her work to eye her bizarre lover with a gentle smile, then continuing as if nothing was taking place.

"Just the thought of your touch sends chills down my spine. The caress of your warm skin would send me into fits of ravening physical impulse that I could not be held accountable for," his voice sounding more malevolent with every breath, staring at her hungrily, he glided around the kitchen counter, his hands down now, limp as hanging leaves. He approached behind her, placing one hand on her abdomen, and the other on one busy shoulder, curving his fingers to make them seem as bony as possible. "I cannot hold it in anymore! You may have to relinquish yourself to me on this night my dear, your mind and your body, _mwa-ha-ha-ha_!"

Kotonoha smiled with prolific amusement, and then craned her head up toward the ceiling, mimicking her best Victorian voice, recapping knowledge from hundreds of romance novels, "Oh no! Could it be that my lord has gone mad? He is not himself on this ghastly night of nights."

"But yes, it is true. For the moon is full tonight, and the earth speaks to me in its dulcet tones, that my mind may be consumed by enrapturing thoughts of corporeal pleasure, and nothing more! Please, lock me away, before you become consumed as well!"

The sound of a set of car keys landing on a table in the living room brought the tacky scene to an abrupt, clattering end, "A-m I interrupting something?"

Torio stood before them on the other side of the kitchen overlook, a blankly curious gaze, his coat draped over his back with one hand, the other hovering over the dispensed car keys.

"Oh!" Kotonoha startled, but remained with her hands on the knife and cutting board.

Eiichi's hands hung to his sides, limp again, but missing their mysterious leafiness, "Hey Torio…"

"Well, I'm glad I got here just in time. Any later, and it would've been 'awkward'," his voice bubbly, a broad, toothy smile on his face.

"Yes, thank you captain buzzkill…" Eiichi grabbed a beer from the fridge and weaved his path back into the living room to continue watching television.

"Hello Torio," Kotonoha beamed from the kitchen.

"Hello Fair Lady Kotonoha of The House of Katsura," this made her blush.

Torio turned to the now lackadaisical Eiichi, "So I'm just curious, should I be off to the side somewhere playing an organ?"

"You'd have to send a query to Bram Stoker first. Let me know when you hear back from him," Eiichi stared at the screen from the couch.

"You're right, I know you two would settle for 'Gettin' Jiggy with It'," this one actually did make Eiichi laugh, but he hid it from Torio as best he could, turning his head toward the backrest. "Now Eiichi, you know better than to seduce my student while she's hard at work. Where's your sense of duty?" Torio sent a volley of tsks Eiichi's way.

"Torio, how was work?" Kotonoha asked from the kitchen.

"The same old, but the boss is reaming me out about some reports that haven't been filed for over a week now…"

While Kotonoha was distracting him, Eiichi's phone began buzzing. He grabbed it from the coffee table, he'd received another text from Chie. 'I talked with Yuuki about you a little, and well…he doesn't really seem to like you, which of course is reason for me to only like you more, but what do you suppose that's all about?'

Eiichi could either be honest about the situation, tell her that Yuuki likes Kotonoha and look like an upright jackass for 'assuming' such a thing, or feign being oblivious and work on pushing her towards the idea over time. He didn't want to, and it was situations like this that made him avoid friendships in the past. If he told her Yuuki liked 'someone', she would put that together too quickly as well. He took a drag off his vaporizer, thinking.

"Did you brown the meat?" Torio's voice sounded from the kitchen.

"I thought you gave me this to do on my own?"

"I know, I'm just checking…"

Eiichi tapped on the keypad, 'Yeah, I kinda' noticed when we met. He was pretty cold towards me,' though Yuuki had been burning hot with discontent. 'He and Kotonoha, my girlfriend, have been acquaintances for a long time and he was more interested in helping her than having anything to say to me. I was a little concerned about helping you out for this reason, since Yuuki and I don't seem to get along. To tell you the truth, I think he's a good kid from what I've seen so far, but I have no idea what his attitude toward me is all about. Since he's your brother, how about you work with him and let me talk with Roka?' He pondered his response a moment, hoping it would be good enough. This is also why Eiichi didn't text much, it was easier to work through a conversation face to face where he could read the other party, and texting just took all that away.

'lol! Boy you're lengthy. I think I know what's going on,' with another winky face. 'This could still work. I'm only speculating here, but Yuuki seems to have eyes for your girl, so I'll do what I can on that side of things. You work on Roka, see if you can get her to drop some of that spite she has toward Yuuki so she can see the possibilities. Hopefully Yuuki will get to know you better, but that's for another day.'

Wow, that didn't take long. Chie was a pretty optimistic gal. Eiichi gave himself a figurative pat on the back for his social skills not failing him in the binary system. Still, how was he supposed to get a feisty spirit like Roka to drop her negative views for someone he only knew so much about?

He tapped about on the keypad, 'I'll do what I can.'

 **AN:** So I read the Cross Days manga, and yep, brought back all the same stresses as the original twelve episode anime and I was having more violent thoughts towards the womanizer we love to hate. And seeing Kotonoha in that light just…ugh, creeped me out. I wonder if I had not killed off Sekai and Makoto in my first story if they would have added some more troubles to face in this. Still, that punk-ass had it coming, 'so I just killed the man'. Besides, there would be a lot of changes if they hadn't died and this whole thing would be really complicated. Anyways, that's enough of me rambling, I hope you enjoyed this and look forward to the next chapter.

...Write fiction everyday

1 "Puzzles" by Craig D'Andrea

2 "Stomp" by Van Larkins


	4. Chapter 4 Appearances

**Chapter 4: Appearances**

Eiichi slumped down in one of the four circular, polypropylene surfaced stools with iron posts bolted into the floor, around a broad, circular, fiberglass, bolted table, arranged perfectly so no one could scoot their seat in for comfort, or so a malfunctioning student couldn't use one to attack an unwary student – yeah, because prison riots happened in high school.

A large number of bustling students created a dull roar of conversation and fluctuating emotions that did make him somewhat uneasy. Long lines stretched from the food court concessions and here and there could be seen a student carrying a tray of food, or a pair of eyes starring over at the couple, that avoided contact whenever noticed. Kotonoha placed her tote bag in its space next to him.

"So remind me again why we're eating in the cafeteria?" Eiichi asked.

"Well, you said something about going out of your routine, so I figured it would give your brain some exercise being around other people. Come on, take in all those emotions so you can keep your wits sharp," like it was some kind of…training program or something…

"But-but, the roof! If we don't go up there, someone else might claim it!" Eiichi panicked.

"You stress out about the weirdest things sometimes. We'll eat up there again, it doesn't matter if anyone uses it now."

"Ya know, you're putting me at risk here…" he muttered.

"That's alright, if you start feeling woozy, we'll leave."

"Oh no, oh…" he clutched his head, wincing. "That girl over there is having family problems…I don't know if we can stay…"

"Yeah, you need this if you think I'm going to fall for that one."

"But her mom…she can't make this month's rent and her dad keeps staying out late…"

"And her brother is a criminal mastermind with a bionic arm, and the family dog is from another planet, like you would know all that in one minute. What do you want to eat?"

Eiichi gave up, slouching against the table, "Yakisoba…"

"That makes two, I'll be right back," she walked off toward the crowd at the noodle stand.

Was this really becoming a thing? Eiichi buried his head in his arms, "Eiichi, today it's the roof, one day it'll be the TV remote, or those chocolate glazed pastries you like so much…"

It was happening, slowly, one by one, some of his freedoms were being dashed away. His territory was being invaded, just like with the roof. Eventually, he'd be wearing a sweater vest, and the 'yes, dears' would start…

"No…no way. I'll burn the damn thing…" ' _But what if she knitted it herself, like the first one?_ ' "Dammit…"

Putting his unnecessary worries of a midlife crisis aside, he had a more pressing matter to focus on. He had not seen Roka all day, but if he'd never noticed her before, he couldn't expect to know where to find her. He turned over and leaned his back on the table, peering about the crowded cafeteria, wondering why so many students felt the need to eat inside when spring was just around the corner. Did she only tie her hair that way for basketball practice, or was that a normal thing?

If he did find her, he supposed Roka would be okay with hearing him out for a minute at least, even if he'd sided with Chie. She did not loath him like Yuuki, and had simply expressed curiosity toward him, despite being annoyed by his teaming up with her frivolous senpai. He risked an egotistical thought that his renown could help him out here a little, and she'd possibly like the idea of being seen talking with him.

He wondered why he was again, sticking his nose in someone else's love life, or lack thereof. Still, he'd sort of made a promise to Chie, and she was beginning to sound like a good friend, even with her well expressed interests in him.

"Um…hey there…h-handsome," now this one was a liar, and what was up with that pickup line?

Eiichi turned to find himself gazing upon the modest spectacle of a red headed beauty. Her light pink lips pouted at him from underneath a pair of shy, garnet colored eyes, the flowing auburn hair matching with the warm shades as it draped around her shoulders. Naturally, any guy, committed or not, would've found this a pleasing sight. To her, Eiichi looked stunned, maybe a little too stunned, but not for the reasons she thought. Eiichi had become overtly aware of his surroundings, all his senses on high alert because of the person standing before him. It turned out this one was lying about more than her feeble pickup line, her entire existence was a lie.

Girls were typically feminine and guys were typically masculine, though their levels of femininity and masculinity varied. There were very masculine girls in the world, or else tsundere's and tomboys wouldn't exist. And as well, there were also very feminine guys. However, their thought and emotional patterns remained the same. No matter how masculine or feminine either gender was, neither could escape this. One of the basics of Eiichi's life as a reader was learning these patterns and their differences. Men thought in a very organized sequence of situations, while women had more of a flow to their pattern that could still change immediately, but with very little forewarning.

The pattern that Eiichi was receiving from the output of this particular 'girl' did not at all line up with what it should. For a moment, he had begun to think that his sniffer was off, or that it was literally possible that there was some kind of scientific or psychological anomaly that could cause one pattern to be switched for the other. From every angle, she looked like a girl. The jawline, the hip curvature, the dainty hands and polished nails, the smooth facial features, even the chest screamed female, though that last one was because this person had to be using pads, but her emotional processing was giving Eiichi the impression of a dog trying to pass itself off as a cat. And what's more, he had only met the particular pattern in question very recently.

"Y-Y-Y-Yuuki!?" The glasses were missing, the men's uniform replaced with a girl's, the short hair replaced with a wig of flowing red strands, but it was him alright.

In Yuuki's mind, everything came to a dead halt, as shock overwhelmed him and his face turned white underneath the gentle shading of blush. Then, Eiichi could feel a plunge of emotion, with brain chemicals surging into Yuuki's head. In milliseconds, his adrenaline at this immediate, unexpected, unpredictable discovery welled into a pressured ball of disbelief, panic and mortification, exploding and sending chills throughout his body with the ejection of a single phrase, ' _How did he know!?_ '

Real pain surged into Eiichi's head and he planted his elbow on the surface of the table, grimacing into his hand. To Yuuki, it probably looked like a posture of absolute disgust.

' _I wanted to eat on the roof! I just wanted to eat on the roof, but nooo~!_ '

He had never seen a transvestite before, at least not one in full 'uniform'. He imagined he might have been around one or two before in passing, without realizing it. He wasn't a mind reader exactly, so he wouldn't have known unless they were overwhelmed by their fears or fantasies.

When he had first been greeted, upon turning and seeing the figure standing before him, his mind had been processing everything as his eyes instinctively scanned up and down the person in question. Now, Eiichi shifted uncomfortably in his seat, leaning away. His eyes kept telling him one thing while his brain continued to give them a sound beating. Yuuki could really pull it off, but he had to if he didn't want to be spotted. Of all the other times that he cursed his own disposition, this was one of those times when Eiichi thanked God as often as he could in his heart for making him one of His bizarre little creations, because without his abilities, Yuuki would've had him fooled. Maybe it was his imagination, but he thought he could hear a certain Aerosmith song playing somewhere in the background.

' _This is supposed to be high school – WHERE NOTHING INTERESTING HAPPENS!_ '

"I…uh…" Yuuki stammered, his overly convincing feminine voice beginning to slip. Then he touched his face, distressed. He must've thought some of his makeup had smeared, because he frantically took out a pocket mirror to check.

"What are you do—" Eiichi had started, but suddenly, at the most inopportune time, there was another presence that approached.

"Eiichi? Who's this?" Kotonoha's innocent face poked pins of curiosity at Eiichi and the newly found conspirer as she stood with a tray and two steaming bowls of noodles. Eiichi could sense that Yuuki had come there with a plan, and based on their last interaction, and how this whole situation stank so bad it could peel paint, he knew it wasn't for his benefit.

The fear and anxiety, directed from Yuuki to Kotonoha, only made Eiichi worse and he had to hold in a few painful groans. He could not appear tired, or at least make up something if he did. Yuuki clapped the pocket mirror shut, and bowed immediately, trying to keep his face as much out of sight from Kotonoha as possible, his feminine voice, though shaky, had regained its composure, "I-I'm sorry! I'm new here and I was just asking him where the bathrooms were." At least he knew when to back out once the mission had been compromised.

"Y-Yeah…" Eiichi played along and put on his best look of normalcy. "Uh, if you head down that hall, they should be around the corner."

Inside, Yuuki was exceedingly grateful to him for not blowing his cover, "Thank you so much!" The pseudo-girl padded away and out of sight. Eiichi felt a weight lifting off his shoulders, which only helped him to realize more how tired he'd become. He just knew there was going to be a follow up discussion from his crossdressing assailant.

Kotonoha shook her head and smiled, "Why is it every time I turn around, there's a girl asking you for something?"

"Why is it every time I turn around, there's a guy asking for your number?" this was really the best he could do.

"Hm…touché."

* * *

' _What the hell was that!?_ ' was the question that preyed on Eiichi mind every moment after lunch, right up to the end of the day.

Now that he thought about it, Eiichi remembered Yuuki's likely small sized uniform looking rather bulky on him in the library. He was a small guy, much smaller than an average Japanese male. He also remembered Roka's impolite comments about Yuuki being girly. Chie said they had a run in, and Roka had referred to him as a pervert, could she have…does Chie know as well?

"Things are getting crazy Eiichi, remember what happened last time?" maybe he was thinking too much about it, Roka and Chie didn't have much concern when they'd been talking about him. He supposed it could be possible that they knew and it just didn't bother them, Chie was pretty laid back. If anything, Roka would be the one to be surprised with.

He couldn't remember sensing any attraction from Yuuki, there was so much pain from the stress it would have been impossible. Attraction would've balanced things out more, plus he would have sensed it in the library the other day. It wouldn't have been the first time Eiichi felt attraction from the same sex, it was just something he would've acknowledged and set boundaries for, he wasn't a bigot. And yet, Yuuki had approached him, convincingly dressed as a girl, and was hitting on him, but he hated Eiichi, and that was the truth. If anything, through all Yuuki's nervousness, Eiichi could still sense the same amount of disgust from the non-incognito Yuuki as before, but he had been pretty focused on whatever he was planning to do. Eiichi knew he had a plan, he just didn't know what. Wait…Yuuki was nervous. He was _really_ nervous, even before he'd said anything to Eiichi, his awareness had been high as well. Which meant, it could be possible that was his first time doing… _that_.

His own thoughts were making his head spin and he took a deep breath. He decided to cut through a courtyard to get to the front of the school faster, on his way to meet with Kotonoha, ready to put all this behind him for a couple hours, and looking forward to asking Chie some meticulously formed questions through text later this evening. He had his hand on the door when he looked out the window and was greeted with the sight of his assigned objective, seated on a bench underneath a sakura tree.

He quickly ducked back behind the wall and leaned. It had been Roka, sitting in the evening shade, wearing a deeply troubled look.

' _That's both of them in one day! I was only supposed to meet with one, and I got two! What the hell have you done so far, Chie!?_ '

He had been looking for her and here she was, in all her love-struck glory. So tying her hair in twin tails was her normal thing. He peaked around the corner again to get a better look at that sad face. He knew he'd be walking in to another hot zone, this one was going to be very awkward as well. Why was he playing along with this? Even if Chie and he were successful in the long run, things might just blow up in their faces, leaving both Roka and Yuuki hurt.

"Why me?" he pleaded to the ceiling.

He had to deal with the task at hand and figure out a way to sort everything else out later, Chie was counting on him, he supposed…he had to at least treat it like she was.

1He sucked wind in his nose, and with a shot out his mouth, he pushed the door open. She had her hands clasped together with her tote bag, giving that schoolgirl 'thousand yard stare' to the grass. As he approached casually, her atmosphere of dejection welcomed him with a hug of dark, elongated claws.

"Roka, fancy meeting you here."

Roka's dim eyes peered up at the newcomer, hands in his pockets like when she first saw him.

"Oh Kuzoka-san, how's it going…" she stood, her bow was very slow.

"Ah, you don't need to do that. I was just happening by and saw you, so I thought I'd say hello."

"Well that's nice, thank you."

"Mind if I sit?"

"You don't have to—"

Despite her answer, Eiichi sat down a respectable space from her, "Ya know, I use to do this a lot when I was a first year."

"Well…what're you talking about?" she returned to her seat.

"I kind of kept to myself, I had a lot on my mind, which I guess is typical for a first year."

"Did you have any friends?"

He shook his head, "No, not really. Do you?"

"Well I am on the basketball team."

He chuckled, "Yeah, you're bound to have some friends there. You have to rely on each other after all."

She had brightened up just a tad, but it didn't take long before she slumped down again.

"So why are you so down?"

She sighed, "I don't know…"

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but you look like you need someone to talk to."

She rustled the bag in her hands, a blink to the green blades.

"If I tell you, could you promise to keep it a secret?"

"Of course."

Hesitating, giving him a lazy side glance, she started, "I…I've been thinking of someone, but it's not like I like him!" she backpedaled. "I…said something to him that was very mean. And I kinda' wish I hadn't now. I really don't know that much about him, and I…don't know how to go about apologizing to him," okay, so it was likely she didn't know.

Eiichi kind of wanted to take out his vaporizer to puff on during this discussion, but he knew this wasn't the right place for it. It was kind of his thing, and it gave him something else to do to take his mind off the pain.

"Have you tried talking to him?"

"I wanted to, but…it's his stupid face! I almost can't stand the idea of being seen talking with him! _I mean_ —" backpedaling again. Her frustration was hard on him, but the innocent attraction eased things a little.

"I think I have a good idea of who you're talking about," as if he didn't know already.

"D-Don't get the wrong idea!" she pointed.

"It's alright, no one's assuming anything," raising his hands. She couldn't be more obvious though.

"I uh, don't know how to approach him. I want to apologize, but I saw him…talking with another girl."

"Well that doesn't necessarily mean something, what were they doing?"

"I don't know, they looked really happy though. I think they were talking about books."

"Uh-huh."

"I don't really read a whole lot, so…books aren't really my thing. If I try talking to him about it, he'll probably think I'm stupid…"

"You don't have to talk _with_ him about it, just ask him and listen."

"What good will that do?"

"There's nothing wrong with just sharing with someone. It gives you a chance to learn more about them, even if you're not at all interested in what they're talking about. If you listen you'll pick up things, and eventually you'll be able to talk with him about it regularly. I bet if you talked with him about basketball, you'd lose him in the first few seconds, but if he's interested, he'll ask you questions. I remember a few times Kotonoha left me in the dust talking about Fryderyk Chopin, but I just enjoyed hearing her talk. I love to hear her play too…"

"Is that your girlfriend?"

"Yeah hey, there's a lot we don't have in common. Sometimes I still wonder why she picked me. She likes classical music and pop, I like speed metal. She reads those gooey romance novels, I prefer Tolkien and Hemingway. She likes ballet, I like boxing. In fact, I think the only thing we share in common is our love for scenery and travel, that and puppies."

"That's amazing! …what if he asks why I'm asking?"

"Well, you both do sound like you're on pretty unstable ground," and if she knew what he knew, there wouldn't be any ground to stand on. "Just tell him you're curious, after you apologize."

"He has to apologize too," she became stern.

"What'd he do?"

She blushed intensely, a sensation of incursion appeared and skyrocketed, "This is a secret, remember? If you tell anyone, I'll tell Chie and she'll have your head."

"What do I look like, the school gossip?"

"Okay. He…um, he…touched me…"

"Uh-uh…juh-h-how-how did he touch you?" Eiichi's stammering began to rival hers. ' _Oh man, is this guy really a pervert and I'm just not picking up on it fast enough? Maybe I am out of shape…_ '

"I-I-It was an accident, I think…" waving her hands.

"You think?"

"Well it's not that he really touched me, there was a lot happening. I was changing in one of the club rooms when he barged in, and one thing led to another, and he sort of…saw something he shouldn't have…" her rich shade of pink turning rouge.

"That whole situation sounds like something he shouldn't have seen," but who changes in a club room without locking the door!?

"I know that! He apologized, sort of. I don't think he knew I was in there…Chie brought me over to their house and something else happened, and that's how I found out he was her brother," her feelings of invasion oddly turning back to attraction.

"And what happened there?"

"That's when I said what I said to him and he kicked me out. I…said he looked like a girl…" her voice turning to shame.

The pieces were slowly starting to fall into place.

"What made you say that?"

"He stepped out of the bathroom…in his boxers…we had a fight and I got angry and…" they might as well have been made for each other, they were a couple of little clumsy, careless, cuddle buddies!

"Is that really what you think?"

"I don't know…he is kinda' scrawny…" her hands and knees rubbing together.

"Well, if that's really what you think, then why do you want to apologize?"

"B-Because…I just want to, _okay_?"

Eiichi stayed silent and looked at her, she was a little fireball.

"I'm sorry…I just don't know what to do…I hope I can talk to him. He seemed to really like her…"

"Wait, what'd this girl look like?"

"Well she's…taller than me, she had long black hair, glasses and…a nice figure…" the petit Roka was flush with envy.

"Yep, that would be Kotonoha in librarian mode."

"That's her!?"

"Mhm, you have nothing to worry about. In fact, I think if she knew I was staying after class to talk with girl, I'd have some splainin' to do. And that's my little secret for you to keep…but man she's so amazing in those glasses…"

Roka mused, "I hope a guy will talk about me like that one day."

"Oh you don't need to worry about that."

"Huh?"

This conversation was getting more exclusive by the second. Her strain had mellowed out finally, but Eiichi was walking on eggshells, "I'm serious. You're a cute girl, your athletic, it shouldn't take you long to find a guy."

"How can that be possible…I'm short…"

"So? What's that got to do with anything? Though a short girl on the basketball team, that's pretty impressive. But if you're so conscious about your appearance, why are you making fun of him for his…"

Just then his phone vibrated. There was a text on it from Kotonoha, 'Eiichi, I'm out front, are we walking home? If you decide to meet me, be careful, I think I'm coming down with a cold.'

"Hmm, speak of the wolf and she will appear…kinda'."

"That her?"

Eiichi began tapping his response, "Yeah, and that would be about my cue to go," he stood up, 2the evening sun was beginning to drop down to the unseen horizon, the courtyard beginning to get dark. "It was nice talking to you. Yeah, just approach him when you have a chance and be the first to apologize, it should get him to do the same. Oh yeah, before I forget, I thought you should know, Chie sent me yours and Yuuki's cell numbers."

"She _what_!?"

' _Ow, ow…_ ' the pleasant reward for his efforts, he lifted his head. ' _Just look at the pretty clouds Eiichi…_ '

Roka's fists unclenched, "I mean…I guess that's okay."

"She only meant well. If you want me to, I'll get rid of it."

"No, no, that's fine. Actually, send me a text so I have yours, I would like to talk with you more, if you don't mind."

"Not at all," Eiichi padded on his phone again and sent her the message. "Feel free to talk to me anytime."

He turned to leave, but her voice stopped him.

"Um…" she had stood, "You may not look it, but you're a very nice guy, Kuzoka-san. I think that's why Kotonoha picked you."

"Appearances can be deceiving," and he'd just broken new ground on this one. "Just call me Eiichi, kay?"

A little smile broke out on that once sad face, "Okay, and you call me Roka."

"That fits, see ya around."

Satisfied with being able to clean up some of that depressing smog from her output, it was not long before Eiichi was out the front doors of Sakakino. The clouds above were a broad spreading of gray with paintings of rich orange on their edges, golden rays here and there against a backdrop of blue, sakura trees became spiny silhouettes on the outstretched path. She was waiting for him at the foot of the steps. Feeling somewhat light footed, he scaled down quickly to meet her.

"Hold it!" Kotonoha stuck a hand out, looking a little panicked. "I've been sneezing like crazy for the past twenty minutes. It's stopped now, but I don't know if it means I'm coming down with something."

"Yeah, those early spring colds will get ya. Ah, but if I get sick, we can be sick together."

"No, I am not risking you getting anything, you have finals."

"But you have finals too. If we both get sick, it'll give us a better chance to study. Hey—, that's a good plan."

"Yeah…yeah…" she wiped her nose with a cloth. "Maybe it was dust from the heater," they began walking. "So what were you up to?"

"Was helping out a new friend."

"Okay, I wondered why you were taking so long. Sounds like you took my advice."

"I take your advice, it's not like I tune you out."

"Really~, because sometimes I wonder."

Letting go of his retort, Eiichi eyed Kotonoha up and down in her coat and boots.

"Hey, do you have those reading glasses of yours on you?"

"As always, why?"

"Could you take them out, I want to check something."

She fished around in her coat and brought out the case. She opened it and removed the specs.

"Put them on…" he stopped her, looking very intent.

"Um…what's this about?" she slipped the frames over her face.

He peered at her closely.

"Satisfied?"

"Not yet," he leaned forward, she brought her hand up to his chest to stop him, but without much effort.

When they parted, her eyes were still open, "What was that for?"

"No reason, you can take them off now."

"No, I think I'm going to keep them on."

"But you don't want to ruin your sight."

"I think I'll be _fi_ — _ne_!"

"See, you're walking funny."

"Okay, but you're going to get sick now."

"You worry too much…"

 **AN:** I realize that Yuuki does not talk when he's dressed up as Yuu in the manga so he doesn't blow his cover, but I decided to make it so he did some practicing with his voice. After all, Makoto was really messed up and grabby, so Yuuki didn't have to do much, whereas with Eiichi he'd have to put forth a little more effort. My next post will be Friday. Funny question I thought I'd ask, how cool would it be if Eiichi hung out with Himari from _School Rumble_? And/or Ookami from _Ookami-san and her Seven Companions_?

1 "Sliabh Gal Cua/Kishor's Tune" by Tony McManus

2 "Irene Meldrum's Welcome to Bon Accord" by Tony McManus


	5. Chapter 5 Norms

**Chapter 5: Norms**

1One bare lightbulb glowed overhead and set a dim yellow glaze over a dark blue, late model sports car that took up one side of a small garage. On the other side, a set of tin shelves sat against a wall, on top of a concrete floor. Also against this wall, a long black pad, about the length of a human torso, was mounted against a post drilled in to the wall, a jump rope on the floor near it. There was a large roll-out tool box near the front of the car, a space from a door, an oily rag lay on its lid next to a pair of clean hand towels.

The sounds of hissy breathing filled the garage, two shadows facing each other circled as they rocked back and forth, hands raised in front of their faded complexions. Momentarily, there would be a break of intense padding noises, with synchronized increased hissing from one of the shadows.

"Eyes on me, eyes on me, don't look at my hands…" a shirtless Eiichi had his bare hands up before his face, reddened palms out forward, fingers lightly spaced apart, clad in only his gym shorts and boxing shoes.

Another break of intense hits, Eiichi's hands were attacked. Kotonoha strained in front of him in her sweat fringed sports top, gym shorts and shoes, wearing his heavy bag gloves. Kotonoha's long shimmering ponytail hung loosely, waving across her back and dancing through the air, a few strands hanging out of place from the rigorous activity. Sweat trickled down their faces and heaving torsos as they leered at each other intensely.

"Stay on those toes, elbows in."

Eiichi moved one hand down, aligning it with his abs, knuckles facing out now, the other he aligned with his face. Kotonoha's fists snapped forward, the gloves smacking against the face target and once against the ab target, hissing air between her teeth. He shifted the surfaces subtly in front of her from side to side to create the aspect of a weaving opponent.

"Reverse," when before they had been circling each other counterclockwise, they began circling clockwise. "Only exhale out your mouth when you strike."

Kotonoha attacked his hands fiercely, throwing a barrage of hits, not stopping. Eiichi's cell phone on the toolbox sprang to life with an alarm.

"That's time!" Eiichi's intense look turned to a gentle smile as he left his stance and approached the fatigued Kotonoha. "Really nice, you're a fast learner. I already have you working combos," he took one of her upturned, gloved hands and began undoing the velcro.

"Did I ever tell you I took Iaido?" she said, a little out of breath.

"No, how far did you get with it?"

"I don't want to brag…but I exceled."

"Hm…" remembering a cold night and the blade of a saw, "That would explain a lot."

' _Let it go Eiichi… Just let it go._ '

He slipped the glove off her hand and proceeded to undo the other.

"We should really invest in some more equipment if you're going to be training me," she eyed his red palms. "I'm going to need my own gloves too."

"Yeah, I guess we could."

"Maybe I should get weights, and a proper bag," she looked at the pad drilled into the wall.

"If you want to work on your strength, it wouldn't be a bad idea, but strength isn't everything. A few of the pros I view online don't even do weight training, it's all endurance and conditioning," he slipped the other glove off and Kotonoha began undoing her wrist wraps.

Eiichi grabbed his cell and tossed her a towel, and they headed inside. Kotonoha went straight to the kitchen to get a bottle of water. Eiichi was looking at his cell when he approached the kitchen overlook and pulled up a stool, setting the gloves and his towel down. He'd received a text message. Oddly enough, he did not hear his phone go off while they had been training.

"Could you hand me a beer?"

"A beer after training?" Kotonoha, with her face in the fridge.

"There's nothing like it," Eiichi smiled.

Torio appeared from the hall, "Have a good fight?"

"Yeah," Kotonoha closed the fridge door and handed Eiichi the beer, "Eiichi says I'm improving rather quickly, pretty soon I'll be able to take you," feeling competitive and raising her fists playfully.

"Well that's a fight I'll happily avoid," Torio laid back on the couch, facing the recliner.

The text Eiichi received had come from…Yuuki!

'I know you have my cell number.'

Eiichi tapped on his keypad: 'That's impressive. What I want to know is how you got mine when I never sent you anything.'

A little ahead of schedule, Yuuki had decided to contact him. The strain of the whole thing might've been too much for him to bear. Despite his attempt at whatever he was trying to do, Eiichi couldn't help feeling sorry for him.

Yuuki had sent the message while Eiichi and Kotonoha had been training, so it would be a few minutes before he received a response.

"So what's on the menu?" Kotonoha stood by Torio's place at the couch.

"I'm not sure…" Torio rubbed his eyebrow. "I know I said I'd take the reins tonight, but I'm getting nothing. Maybe seafood, I don't know."

"We can afford that?" Eiichi said, not looking up from his phone.

A message popped up: 'Chie told me you were friends, so I peeked into her contacts.' Sneaky little bastard.

Torio snickered, "No. And I didn't do any shopping either…"

Eiichi got another text: 'We need to talk.'

"We still have that cabbage in the fridge, right?" Eiichi asked.

"Yeah."

"I wonder if they have russets at the store…" looking back at his phone and tapping his response: 'We sure do. Where and when?' hoping this wasn't some kind of setup.

"Hey, I know what you're getting at," Torio pointed.

"We could make mom's traditional meal."

"Yeah! Hey, we're almost in March, it would be a nice—wait, no, the potatoes would have to be russet and I don't think you could even get a considerable amount of corned beef for the price. That import tax is murder on my wallet."

Yuuki's response: 'Meet me at the back of the main building during lunch.'

"What is corned beef?" Kotonoha chimed in.

"Haha, it seems our aristocratic friend has yet to taste the modest cuisine of the O'Connell bloodline."

Eiichi looked up, "It's nasty looking stuff, but surprisingly tasty, as long as you don't get a brisket with a whole lot of gristle in it."

"Yeah, it's very salty, but the cabbage makes up for that."

"How do you cook the cabbage?" she asked.

"Well, you roast it with butter and olive oil in a pan with a lid, kinda' like you're sautéing it…"

'You're not going to try anything weird, are you?' if he wasn't already stressing, this would do it.

"…boil the potatoes until they get a little cakey, then add rosemary or thyme. But it wouldn't be a right meal without some stout or porter. And we have no chance of making anything like that tonight. Thanks for getting my hopes up Eiichi."

"You're welcome." Eiichi's phone screen lit up: 'I assure you I only want to talk. Don't get the wrong idea about me. I'll explain.' To anyone else, this would be a futile 2CYA move on Yuuki's part, but Eiichi knew better.

"Ah…" Torio slumped back against the couch, "We could put that off for the 17th. Maybe I'll make stew instead. For now, I guess we could all just go out for beef bowls."

"I'm good with that," said Eiichi, tapping on the keypad: 'During lunch, back of the main building.'

"That's nice, thanks Torio. Wow, I feel like a real fighter now," Kotonoha smiled, padding her fists together.

"Okay, then time to hit the showers," Eiichi got up.

"Ah-ah! One at a time," Torio pointed, "I know you guys like to have your fun, but with me around, that's just weird."

"Stop thinking weird things. I was gonna' let Koto take hers first."

"Yeah _Torio_ ," she picked.

"Alright, there's gotta' be some kind of law n' order around here ya know," Torio relaxed.

"Thank you Eiichi," Kotonoha squeezed his arm before entering the hall.

Eiichi grabbed his beer and sat back in the recliner. He noticed Torio's amused and rather satisfied aura staring at him from the couch with a broad smile.

"What…" Eiichi grabbed the remote, the TV turning on by Torio's face.

"I told you it would happen man, and now she's practically member of the family."

"I bet you've been patting yourself on the back ever since that first date."

"Yeah, now it's tough enough pulling you two apart."

Without a word, Torio was now concerned something might be bothering Eiichi.

"So what is it now?" Eiichi said.

"Well you look like you were pretty focused on your phone over there. Anything going on?" going with the flow.

"Yeah…" Eiichi explained the situation between Yuuki and Roka, and how he was helping Chie, leaving out a few odds and ends.

"Look at my little brother, playing match maker."

"Well I have some help."

"Maybe get Kotonoha in on it as well."

"Um…" as fantastic as it sounded, he'd have to keep certain information about Yuuki to himself that would be very off-putting, not to mention Yuuki's infatuation with Kotonoha. "I may consider that later on, but I already talked with Roka and she seems really particular about keeping things on the down low." And with that, he remembered there was something else he needed to do, text the unpredictable Chie.

He took out his phone: 'I talked with Roka. How are things on your end?'

"Yeah, it sounds like those two have got it bad, if they argue that much and want to keep so many secrets," said Torio, "They're just denying themselves, that's all. They seriously saw each other naked in the same day?"

"Yup."

"Man, that stuff only happens in manga. They must've been born under good stars or something."

Chie responded: 'Okay, I spoke with Yuuki and he seems pretty ticked about Roka. I tried to talk him in to apologizing to her, but he's pretty focused on something. That situation the other night was a real whammy. Did Roka tell you anything?'

"It's a blessing in disguise, I suppose. What do you think I should do?" Eiichi looked.

"It doesn't look like you're doing anything I wouldn't. Keep talking with her, try to keep yourself available. Maybe talk with Chie about setting something up. Just remember patience, this one's going to take some time."

And then Eiichi had an idea, his eyes flashed at Torio, "So uh…Chie…I'm pretty sure she's single."

"Okay, now you are doing what I wouldn't do. You're getting trigger happy," Torio pointed again.

"And look who's getting gun shy, my philanderous brother."

"I haven't even met her yet, and she's a high school student," for once, Eiichi had Torio flustered and on the ropes.

"She won't be much longer, we're graduating together. She's as old as me, so you guys are what, five years apart?"

"I don't know man…" Torio smoothed back his long hair.

"Come on, she's on the basketball team with Roka, she's really beautiful, except I haven't seen her outside the uniform yet, and she already likes me, just imagine what she'll think when she gets a look at you."

"Well I am the better looking one."

"See, at least your self-confidence is in full gear, ya jackass," Torio still knew how to turn things around. "Plus, this whole setting up Roka and Yuuki thing was her idea. Meddling in other people's affairs? That's already one thing you two have in common. I have her number right here."

"I'll-I'll think about it, okay?"

"Alright, offer's on the table…" Eiichi tapped on the keypad: 'Roka told me what happened. She's willing to apologize to Yuuki for what she said, but Yuuki has to be willing to apologize as well.' It was starting to look like he was going to have to do her job for her, what with Yuuki's undivided attention on him.

Chie messaged back: 'Okay, I'm thinking we should set something up,' that was spooky, 'If the apology goes well, let's try and get them on a date without their knowing.'

Torio looked over, "Is that her?"

Eiichi threw his head up, "Now who's acting like a high school student?"

* * *

The next day, Kotonoha and Eiichi went about their daily routine of him showing up on her step and walking her to school. Eiichi allowed himself to be distracted by their usual conversation and the occasional quip between the two. He had to make it seem last minute, so during class he'd sent her a text message saying he wasn't going to make it for lunch and she'd have to fly solo for a while. Her response was a little gloomy, but she was moderately comfortable with it. It pained him, but he wanted to keep her as uninvolved as possible.

'Go on without me,' where had heard this before? It wasn't what he had said, but it might as well have been.

Finally, Eiichi was going to get to the bottom of things, no more smoke and mirrors. He imagined Yuuki was probably nervous to the point of nausea, while he was bent on knowing just what all this sneaking around was about. Nothing could be easy, could it? It just had to be that he gets setup with the task of bringing two people together, difficult in its own respect, only one of them had such an extravagant secret, and Eiichi had to learn about in the most troublesome way possible. Of all times, Yuuki had remained pretty much silent up to this point, only now he decided to make enough noise that Eiichi had to pay attention to him.

When the lunch bell rang, Eiichi calmly made his way to the side of the main building, thankfully like yesterday, there weren't many students out. Rounding the corner, he saw Yuuki, looking nervous as expected, giving occasional glances in possible directions he figured Eiichi would make his appearance. Thankfully, the red head from yesterday had disappeared, replaced with the short, spectacled boy.

' _Now you see her, now you don't._ '

For someone with a lot to hide, Yuuki didn't seem to have very good situational awareness. Eiichi was able to walk right up to him without being noticed.

"Hey."

" _Wah_!" Yuuki scattered back.

Eiichi was going to have to remember to stop setting people off like this, Yuuki's nervousness already wasn't doing him any good. He touched his head, tired, but to Yuuki, probably looking just as annoyed.

"Don't sneak up on people like that!" Yuuki flared.

"Sorry, I thought you'd notice."

Yuuki straightened his posture, adjusting his tie and pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. Curious and very worried, he was having trouble keeping eye contact with the blank expression on this obscure person who stood tall enough to look down at him.

"H-Have you told anyone?" he asked, with a glance away.

"No."

The anticipation collapsed inside Yuuki, that's one painful emotion down.

"Thank you…" he breathed.

Yuuki was quiet now and Eiichi could feel things getting a little awkward.

"Hey, about the crossdressing, if you're feeling confused about things, I get it man. I'm not going to judge."

"It's not the crossdressing!" Yuuki spouted and then retracted, holding a fearful hand upon his mouth and looking around, hoping no one heard.

Aside from his frustration with Eiichi and the longing, bottled up emotions for Kotonoha, Eiichi could tell this was not an issue, but he still found it kinda' funny. Yuuki was pretty concerned about his appearance, hence what Roka had said to him.

"Then what could have possibly driven you to do that?" Eiichi asked.

"It's not your concern."

"Oh, it damn well is my concern. Do you realize how embarrassing that would've been if Koto—wait…" his voice let out a little snarl, "You wanted Kotonoha to see you with me…"

"What I want to know is how you knew!" Yuuki tried to change the subject.

"Oh no, it's my turn now. You tried to pit us against each other with that little trick of yours," he was picking up signals that Yuuki must have spied on them while they were together, more than a few times. Eiichi kept his cool, delving into Yuuki's psyche, no matter how painful it became, "You were probably going to hang all over me, huh? Asking for my number and treating Kotonoha like she was just a friend of mine."

" _How_! How do you know all this!?" Yuuki was nearly in hysterics, it was obvious that Eiichi turned out a little smarter than Yuuki had taken him for.

"Just be happy you're talking to me and not some other guy. If someone else had seen through your little plan, you'd probably be in some physical peril, that and you'd have a bad reputation so fast, it'd make your head spin. You'd probably have to change schools, so you're welcome."

"So what, you're going to threaten to tell? You want to blackmail me, is that it?"

"What?"

"If you want to, I don't care!" flinging his arms out. "I've settled myself with the consequences, so what's the catch? What do I have to do in exchange for your silence?"

"Dude…" shaken with the absurdity of this sheer upheaval.

"Do you really know what I risked doing what I did? I did it for her! You do not deserve to be with Katsura-san."

Eiichi nodded sardonically, "Mhm, and what brought on this line of thinking?"

"I know about you," Yuuki aimed an accusatory finger.

"Yeah, what've you heard about me…" Eiichi couldn't help droning in abject apathy while rolling his eyes. ' _Ahh, here we go…_ '

"You're a delinquent, and you're violent. You don't follow the rules, and you've been lying for years about a medical condition to get sympathy from the school. Katsura-san needs to be with someone who is trustworthy, who she knows can take care of her. You don't even live in a wealthy enough household." Wow, he'd actually followed them home. Did he even know the meaning of the words 'need to know'? "I bet your track record is so bad, you couldn't even get a job after graduating." Now he was just grasping for stuff, though that last part was almost accurate, and kinda' scary, ' _Why do I feel like I've heard all this before? Oh yeah…_ '

Eiichi thought he'd recite a little American proverb he'd learned from dad about what it is to 'assume', but the translation might be lost on Yuuki. "Hey, I admit I'm no saint, but you've yet to even get to know me. What about the other things that have been going around?"

"Yes, I know about those. I know that whenever Katsura-san is around you, she ends up in trouble somehow. You don't seem to have any moral value or sense of commitment whatsoever."

"Just how dated is your idea of me? What, do you think I'm in a gang because I skip class and keep my shirt untucked? Oh, I don't use proper Japanese either, so I must also be a drug dealer."

Eiichi wondered how this guy knew so much about everything that had happened, and yet he had not been able to pick him out before. He must've made friends with everyone while keeping his distance all the same. He probably had the social profile of a central intelligence agent, keeping in the background until the dust settled before making his move. While Eiichi had been doing his own work in the shadows, this kid was at it as well. Maybe it was his imagination, maybe his mind was fitting pieces into place where they had not originally been, but Eiichi thought he could remember a gangly, spectacle faced student eyeing Kotonoha and him during their library study sessions while walking through the aisles of books.

"Listen, I know you have a thing for Kotonoha, I fully understand, alright."

"I don't have feelings for her."

"Think about what I have to go through every day. There are so many guys on this campus that have it bad for her, sometimes I'm concerned my health might be in danger."

"Yeah, but, you're such a jerk…" Yuuki grumbled.

"Hey kid, I know about the crossdressing and I haven't said shit about it, so could you lay off with the insults?" How did Chie deal with him?

"I saw you talking with Roka yesterday. Shouldn't you have been with Kotonoha?"

"So you spied on me yesterday too. Ya know, just because we're together doesn't mean we need to be with each other every moment of the day. You have a very confined concept of how relationships are supposed to work. She's got stuff she has to do."

"Then why were you talking with Roka?"

"What I can't talk to girls now? Kid, you've gotta' understand something, Kotonoha is a reserved person, but she talks with guys just as much. It's a little thing called trust."

"Stop calling me kid! Call me by my last name, it's Ashikaga by the way, or did you forget that?"

"I'm sorry," he eased up, smiling a little, "For some reason I just can't help but think you're kinda' like little brother to me. I guess it's because I don't have one."

Yuuki was momentarily taken aback by this sudden showing of kindness, but his lack of trust continued to pull on him, convincing him only more that Eiichi was a liar.

"You seem like a really nice kid…" Eiichi was serious. It was really refreshing to be talking to yet another kind spirit. Given Yuuki's bizarre, yet daring stunt, Eiichi had the feeling that he was just as reckless and dedicated as a certain ex-chain smoker he knew. "That's more than I can say for most of the minds- _I mean_ guys—" that was close "—I've seen walking around here. Believe me, in another life, if Kotonoha and I were not already a thing, I'd help you out in a heartbeat." Though he remembered he was supposed to be trying to get him with Roka, things were getting way off track. "If you really do not believe I'm dedicated to her, then why is it you're having this talk with me right now?"

"I don't have feelings for her."

"You do, unless your stunt really was influenced by other urges. What made you come up with that anyways?"

"I don't…"

"Yeah, just keep lying to yourself, because then you'll never have to admit it. But those feelings won't go away until you do, and if that keeps up, well then you're only living with an infatuation."

Yuuki looked at his feet, Eiichi could feel the gears working, he'd made a mark, but it was all up to Yuuki now.

"No…no I won't stand here and let you take Katsura-san away," Yuuki clenched his fists. Eiichi figured kindness was not something he'd been familiar with.

"You're still going to rely on your shallow perception of me, and yet you won't turn that moral code on yourself. Appearances can be deceiving kid, just like yours. If you were willing to do something that crazy to protect someone, good, you've proven your loyalty. If you ever find a girl who's okay with that kinda' stuff, make sure she's decent, and never leave her side."

"I'm not a—!" Yuuki stopped himself. "I'm going to separate you two! Katsura-san deserves better!" Yuuki pointed menacingly. "If you won't release her, then I'll just have to take her from you!"

Eiichi had just about had enough, his eyes narrowed into a dark glare and he could feel Yuuki's fear pulling him away, "Kid, I've stared death in the face more than once for that girl. You're not about to play that game with me. I'm only trying to help you here."

Despite the fear, despite his doubts because of everything he'd just heard, Yuuki pulled his eyes up and glared right back at Eiichi, snarling, " _Watch_ _me_."

Without another word, Yuuki turned and walked away.

Eiichi sighed, happy to at least have a few moments of mental peace. Makoto, Taisuke, and nearly every guy he'd ever come in contact with had trouble looking him in the eye when he got that way, but this short bookworm in glasses, who'd probably received all kinds of teasing for his feminine appeal, had just stood his ground and figuratively spat in his face. Eiichi could've been seven feet tall with twenty-four inch arms, and it wouldn't have made a difference. He smiled, "Now that's courage…"

He could sense another storm was brewing, he just hoped he'd be able to come out of this one with his limbs intact. "I'm in it now…" he walked out into the sunlight beyond the building.

In a space in front of the main building, Eiichi was approached by a male student.

"Yo Eiichi! What's up man?" the guy came running up to him. "I saw you with a really hot red head in the cafeteria the other day."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, is she a friend? Would you mind introducing me, or you could give me her number."

"It's nice that you asked, but you just missed her. She's actually a cousin of mine that was visiting for a couple days. She's already headed back home."

"Aw man, I thought she was a student here."

"She wanted to try it out, but it wasn't for her."

"Damn…well sorry man, I didn't mean any disrespect."

"It's cool."

1 "Cuach Mo Lon Dubh Bui"; "Roaring Water" by Altan; "The Crows of Killimer/Box Reel #2/The Boys of Malin" by Solas

2 Cover yo ass


	6. Chapter 6 The best laid plans

**Chapter 6: The best laid plans…**

1And so it began.

It was after school the next day, Kotonoha and Eiichi were seated at one of the broad oak tables in the library, homework and exam books in front of them. Considering their setting, Eiichi was already feeling on alert, and couldn't help casting the occasional glace to the left and right when he figured Kotonoha wouldn't notice; looking for the boyish stalker.

"How can you not like Jim Gaffigan?" Kotonoha said while scribbling on her assignment.

"Uh—It's not that I don't like him," going back to his work and the conversation, "It's his stupid voice, it ruins his jokes."

"How can you like someone and not their voice?"

Suddenly, without warning, introduction, or even asking permission, two shapely girls pulled up seats on both sides of Eiichi, leaning in really close to him.

"Eiichi, our club is doing a photo shoot in a few days and we want you to pose with us."

"Yeah, could you please model for us?" said the other with a clinging hand on his arm, pulling him close.

Their words were lies, but their affections were not, Eiichi could feel each pulling on either side of him like he was a chew toy.

"W-Wait, what!?" he panicked.

"Oh come on Eiichi, it'll be fun!" one hung on his shoulder.

"All the girls would love to have you on and everyone would finally get to meet you."

"Whoa hey, wait!" Eiichi's distracted eyes turning to Kotonoha.

Kotonoha, a passive stare on her face, couldn't help watching the scenario.

One leaned in so close her chest pressed against his arm, pretending the third party across the table wasn't there, "Don't be mean Eiichi, you'd be doing us a big favor."

"Please come."

Kotonoha blinked, "If you're busy right now Eiichi, we can do this later."

His head turned all the way, "No! Wait, Koto-chan!"

Kotonoha closed her book and stood, "I'll text you later." She turned and began walking off.

Eiichi stood, the two sirens still clinging to his sleeves, "Koto! Wait up!"

"Oh, come on Eiichi!" they pleaded.

"Please, you're probably not even in a club," he gathered his things as quickly as he could and rushed off.

After he was able to console Kotonoha, they'd decided to head home.

"I don't know, maybe it's something in the air…" they were walking over to the footlockers.

"That was just very strange," Kotonoha pondered.

Eiichi flustered, "Uh, you know fan girls, no sense of personal space. People just need a hobby," as he undid his combination and opened the door.

A tiny square wall of pinks and ruby reds greeted their eyes. Slips and envelopes toppled out of the locker and on to the floor, painting the air with a mess of strong perfumes. A pile of valentine colored confetti lay before Eiichi's feet. A few snickering bystanders peeked out from around the locker walls.

Kotonoha blinked passively again, "Has this been happening when I wasn't around or something?"

Eiichi looked at her with an uncomfortable smile, "It's probably just a fad…"

The next day, right after getting to school, they were only able to kiss each other before separating for class when Eiichi was attacked by a crowd of girls pressing in close, Kotonoha left standing to the side.

"Eiichi, there's an animal benefit after school today, you like animals, right?"

"Of course he does! He's such a kind hearted guy…"

The crowd made such a big fuss in the hall that students stared while passing by.

"Man, Eiichi, that lucky, lucky bastard," he overheard a griping male student.

"Koto-chan!" Eiichi looked, dazed and drowning.

"I'll see you after class…" she walked away.

' _Dammit Yuuki…_ '

Later, when the between classes bell rang, Eiichi didn't leave the room. Kotonoha appeared in the doorway and saw him at his desk with his head in his arms. Running up to him, she didn't have to say anything.

"I'm not leaving. Why're you here?" his muffled voice sounded from the sleeves of his coat.

"I came to see if anything else was happening. I'm sorry about earlier, I was…"

"I know…"

"Come on, let's get something to drink," she patted his shoulder, "It's all a coincidence, or probably some kind of prank. If you let it get to you, you'll become a shut-in for sure."

It wasn't, but he had to play along. He couldn't tell her, no matter how badly he wanted to.

The paranoid couple were able to make it to the vending machines unmolested. On their way back, Kotonoha decided to accompany Eiichi to his class.

"Why didn't you hang around?" he asked.

"I wanted to get you out of there, but it was for an animal benefit. How would that've made me look?"

They rounded a corner and were met with an awfully gaudy sight.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me…" the wide eyed Eiichi nearly dropped his melon soda when his arms fell to his side.

Off to one area of the hall before them, a group of girls were huddled together, there had to be at least ten to fifteen of them. The one's in front held up a banner in their frisky hands, that nearly covered the width of the hoard, with Eiichi's likeness in a chibi caricature, giving a wink and holding up twin victory fingers. Emblazoned in bright red lettering were the words 'Eiichi Fan Club'. Above their heads, two girls near the back held an additional, narrow, light pink banner declaring the groups affections in more red lettering and decorative hearts.

"Hi Eiichi~!" their synchronized, feminine voices sang, with a few consecutive woots.

At this point, Kotonoha and Eiichi didn't want to go this way, but his class was just a few doors down from the group. He wanted to ask her if she would mind bringing his homework to him for the remainder of the year, but after taking one look at her, he realized now was not the best time.

Kotonoha's surprise had turned to a blushing, vexed grimace. Eiichi could feel her protective jealousy burning a hole in his right lobe, and in the background of her conscious he could faintly hear a vicious ranting of questionable terms that he wasn't even aware she knew the meaning to. Her fists shook next to her hips and Eiichi thought he could see a tension mark on her forehead. It was actually happening, Kotonoha was pissed.

' _Mine!_ ' She grabbed his hand, leading him around the crowd of giggling, cooing girls that blew kisses as they passed. Eiichi could sense their combined eyes and erotic emotions feeling him up. Resisting, he leaned to Kotonoha's side.

"Maybe it's because I'm leaving soon…" he muttered, the group now behind them.

"Just keep walking and pretend nothing happened," she clenched his hand.

* * *

Shifting eyes, watching every skirt clad student in the hall, Kotonoha and Eiichi crept down the stairs from their hiding place on the roof, where having lunch had been a must. Conversation had been exhausting at first. Eiichi did his absolute best to keep to himself everything that had conspired up to this point, but Kotonoha was already beginning to notice something was off. She never asked him any direct questions, nor were her suspicions directed at him, but she was on to something. People could say what they wanted about her, but Eiichi understood her inner workings better than anyone, and 'dumb like a fox' had come to mind more than a few times. The most obvious proof to her was that with all these girls pawing at Eiichi, he'd not disappeared off someplace like a certain dead someone.

'I noticed you were getting pretty furious there,' he'd said.

'I know, I'm so sorry, I hope that didn't hurt you too much…'

'It's okay, you kept your cool, like I knew you would.'

She giggled, 'At least it's not happening to me, you'd turn the place upside down.'

'Oh, there'd be blood in the streets,' followed by more lenitive laughter.

Feeling a little better after their rendezvous and ready to face more of whatever met them for the remainder of the day, Eiichi pondered on their way down about just where Yuuki was getting these girls? No matter what he had told them, they had to get bored eventually.

Just at the bottom of the stairwell, another sight met them that was not at all what either were expecting, and this one caused Eiichi to grow tense and vicious.

Taisuke, oblivious to their presence, had come walking through the halls among the clusters of students. His head of brown, combed back hair bobbed over the tops of the others.

Violent thoughts running through his head at a lightning pace, Eiichi watched him closely, glaring. He could feel Kotonoha's soothing hand on his clenched fist. He swiveled his head to see she'd been watching as well.

They had seen Taisuke a few times since the festival, and a few times he had noticed one or both of them and made a practice of avoiding them. It could have had to do with what happened before and during the festival; what happened between the two of them, Sekai and Makoto, or a combination of the two. Taisuke had not bothered Kotonoha nor Eiichi, but the couple still kept their mutual awareness of him, and this was really not the time to have to see him.

Class was about to start, they just had a few more before getting through the day. Eiichi imagined the elation he'd feel right then might be so intense, he'd actually rush to grab Koto's hand after the last bell and then run her out of there like the place was about to explode.

"I'll see you later, hang in there," she squeezed his hand.

"You too."

They broke off, Eiichi at a brisk walk, the halls just beginning to clear. Though before he could make it to class, he met yet another troubling sight, this one he'd been more acquainted with.

Otome was on her way down the now empty hall, headed in his direction, a small stack of files clutched over her chest, her legs moving her forward at a light jog, she was going to be late. He must've spooked her, because her head turned in his direction, not ten feet away, and she brought one foot forward too quickly, tripping herself. The files scattered all over the floor as she landed on her hip, her hands splayed out.

Absolute shame consumed her, how could she have allowed this to happen in front of him, especially for someone on the basketball team.

"Dammit…" he overheard her hiss to herself.

When they had first met, she behaved very audaciously. She was still this way, even more so as a means of venting her grievances, but not so much when she was around him. Eiichi had received varying unspoken, and fearful opinions aimed at him from the outputs of the people in her clique, however it was apparent that Otome didn't feel this way. Most of them felt that he and Kotonoha had some involvement in the deaths of Sekai and Makoto, but it couldn't be helped. They had been involved, but Eiichi didn't put that knife in Sekai's hand, and Kotonoha didn't whisper in her ear to go ballistic. It had all been a product of Sekai's warped thinking, Kotonoha and Eiichi just happened to be next up on her hit list. They'd all been thinking it though, but not Otome. Makoto had been an old friend of hers, and she was still suffering the grief of his death, especially after being as close to him as she was, but it never once crossed her mind that Eiichi had been to blame. However, through all her emotions, Eiichi couldn't make heads or tails if her siding with him had been based on rational thinking or romantics.

Otome had bottled up her feelings as well, causing her to behave in ways that were most unlike her whenever he was present. What he had done to her plans had been embarrassing to a most high degree, and yet she continued to regard him with this high admiration, coupled with an almost unbridled drive to jump his bones. He figured she was still his enemy, in a sense, because she'd never apologized for what she tried to do, but this did not stop him from wanting to help her.

He knelt down and began sweeping the loose pages into disorderly stacks.

"I-Idiot! The bells about to ring, you're going to be late!"

"Either pick up what you have there, or I'll just leave and you can do it by yourself."

It didn't matter how harsh he was with her, it was only more of a turn on. He knew he was taking a risk, if he collapsed because of her output, he'd be in some real trouble. There was no accidental touching of the hands with a following fixation of dreamy, glistening eyes, only silence between them and paper shuffling. Eiichi stood, handing a few folders to her.

"Thank you…" her frustration had toned down, allowing her to trip out this little line, keeping her eyes timidly to the floor.

"Don't mention it, seriously," he had started to walk away.

"Um…"

He turned around, "What?"

She still couldn't look at him. He definitely knew there was something she wanted to tell him, something that would explain the fluctuating desires, affections, and frustrations that had to do with the recurring pain in her chest, something she'd whispered into a tear soaked pillow on some nights. He couldn't go on disliking her, not if she was like this. He'd been very angry with her before because of how she treated Kotonoha, and what she tried to do, but people could change, it happened all the time, in very subtle ways.

She blinked at the floor and he saw her eyes curve up toward him, only to fall back down, "Nothing…"

"You take care of yourself and stay out of trouble," he'd pencil her in for another day, but he didn't have time now. Talking to him may be like waving a piece of kibble in front of her, but he didn't have any better ideas, and talking with him might allow her some closure.

Maybe she'd been right, he was starting to sound like a cop.

* * *

Yuuki paced slowly through the halls after school, his head tilted down in a look of dim contemplation set behind the broad rims of his glasses, curled fingers and an extended thumb supporting his chin. Outside, it was evening and orange rays were just beginning to shine through the vacant windows of the halls.

The day's siege had gone well, or so his few informants had told him, and everything had worked out as planned. Eiichi had been looking rather overwhelmed and Kotonoha quite steaming. He figured he could count on her desires to avoid conflict to cause her to flee at the shock of every outrageous situation, thus leaving her alone to only question what Eiichi's true motivations were. However…

"Why is she still with him!" the side of his fist smacked against the wall.

It was almost as if his efforts weren't even making a scratch! Eiichi's integrity had been under constant attack while in front of Kotonoha, making him look more and more like the sleaze Yuuki knew he was, but the attacks seemed to be hurting Kotonoha more than anyone. On the surface, things looked like they were working out, at least for a while, but every time they were spotted now, one was not without the other. They were holding hands on an almost constant basis, keeping an eye on each other like they were on some elementary school field trip. They were actually growing closer! What was this!?

He removed his throbbing hand from the wall, gripping it with the other, "Minor setback…"

Brainwashing could have been the catalyst, if he remembered, Makoto had been pretty convincing with his methods, or at least good at hiding them. Or it could have been that Kotonoha had a very clingy nature. With as flawless as she seemed, not even Yuuki could say that she was perfect. Still, he was setting his expectations too high, it wasn't going to happen in one day. He'd have to show Eiichi that he wasn't going to let up, or do something intense, to make him really sweat. But for now, he'd take a break, he had library duty.

When inside, he approached the unoccupied front desk and could see the small clutter of papers and folders on it that awaited him. The guys he worked with had a mutual respect for him, but they really needed to step up and stop leaving him all the slack.

He smoothed his hands over the forms and folders, absentmindedly arranging a set of files that needed to be backlogged before the end of the week. The library was quiet as usual, say for the noise he'd caused by sending those girls on their mission after Eiichi yesterday. There'd been a lot of commotion then, he could remembering their voices echoing and everyone staring as he sat by, quietly.

Yuuki snickered while setting some folders in an inventory basket under the desk. He couldn't help priding himself with that one, they did such a good job. It did hurt him to see Kotonoha so upset though, but she'd have to bear a little longer. Things were going to happen one of two ways, Eiichi gives up, or Kotonoha gets fed up.

"Um, Ashikaga-san…"

He looked and saw Roka standing on the other side of the library desk. He must've been too busy to notice she'd come in.

He didn't say anything at first. Chie had been pestering him a lot about apologizing to her, but he'd been too busy to deal with that. Considering the dire straits Kotonoha was in, Roka could wait. There wasn't even a guarantee that she would be accepting enough to become friends, after what she'd said, so why should he bother?

Roka just stood there, the strap of her tote bag slung over her shoulder and gripped in both hands. Looking awkward, she didn't say anything either. This look was ridiculous for her, but Yuuki couldn't forget how irritating she had been.

He straightened out a stack of papers on the top of the desk by stamping them down, maybe a little more rigorously than was needed, "Come back to make fun of what I look like more?"

Her eyes widened before blinking back to their half opened slits of dejection, "No…"

"Well, I'm kind of working right now. Don't you have practice today?"

She shook her head, "We have the day off, since the season's almost over."

He continued to arrange more papers, not for any real reason.

"I want to…"

"Yeah?" not looking up.

She was quiet again, and he had a lot on his mind, why couldn't she just say what she came here to say and leave?

"I want to apologize for what I called you. I'm sorry…"

He stopped, not really expecting that. At least she was kind enough not to actually say it.

Standing up straight, he looked at her, "Thank you…"

More awkward standing. Yuuki scanned the desk, with nothing left to do there.

"I'm…um, I'm sorry too, for what happened, and for yelling at you…"

"It's okay," she said with a tiny smile of pardon, but her voice quivered a little, "I suppose it was an accident. I yelled at you a lot too."

She seemed like the very active vocal type, but she remained quiet, even after this little exchange.

His phone vibrated. Yuuki was supposed to keep it off while on duty, but this was one rule he didn't typically follow, and today he had a reason. It could have been from anyone, but there was a particular contact he'd been looking forward to hearing from. Taking out his phone, he found himself pleased to see it was.

'The fan club was an interesting touch. Laying it on a little thick, don't you think?' the message displayed with Eiichi's name above.

"So, um…do you like books?" Roka's voice called him away from the business at hand. Technically he shouldn't be texting either, but this was too good for him to pass up.

"Yeah…" he began tapping on the keypad: 'To be honest, it wasn't really my idea. I can't be held responsible for their actions. I merely told them to embrace their imaginations.'

"W-Well…what kind of books do you like?"

"Why, do you read?" looking up.

Roka withdrew, "N-Not really…"

"Hm…" he got another text: 'I'm not budging.'

"I guess I read this and that…" he tapped on his phone, "They released the final _Harry Potter_ volume last year…" tapping, "So I'm waiting for the translation to come out here."

"So, what's it about?" she brightened up.

"You don't know? It's kind of a big deal," a sprinkle of condescending in his voice.

There was a stir from her he noticed out the corner of his eye, "I'm sorry, I didn't know it was that popular…well, maybe you could tell me about it sometime. W-Would you…want to meet for lunch?"

While she was talking, he'd stopped to think about something, tilting his head up from the phone. Only half of what she said reached his ears. He began tapping again, "Um…I'm kind of busy right now…I have to go check the bins pretty soon, I can help you later if you–"

"Would you _put_ _down_ that _stupid_ _phone_ , and listen to me _for_ _one second!_ "

He bolted up, startled from the sudden change in volume. Students in view of the desk looked over their tables and turned in their seats, one even stepped out from an aisle.

"To think that I even tried! You act smart, but really _you're just an_ _idiot_!"

"Who's the idiot! I'm trying to work here and you're yelling at me!"

"Yeah! You're working! While texting someone! You're just like a secretary, because you're such a _girl_!"

She said it, she actually said it, this time in front of people.

Yuuki's blank face turned a pasty shade, the light glaring off his glasses, hiding hurt eyes. And then he reeled back at her, "Just like I thought! You came here to make fun of me again! I guess that apology didn't mean anything then! Well you're so aggressive, you might as well be a boy! Ha! How do you like that!"

Roka looked hurt, and Yuuki thought his words had hit home. But for a moment, she lifted her hand to her lips, like trying to stop herself, then she broke her look of shock and barreled forward with everything she had, " _I didn't come here to do that! But you won't take one minute to listen! I just wanted to talk, but you don't care at all because I'm not the same! I'm not like her, okay! I'm not like Kotonoha! But you can't get over that she's already seeing someone! I shouldn't have come here in the first place!_ "

" _Then why don't you leave! The door's right there!_ "

" _I will! I hope I never see you again!_ " turning away.

"The feeling is mutual!" Yuuki leaned over the desk.

She flung the door open and was gone.

The arrogance of that girl! Yuuki, shaken, looked and could see the students in the library were snickering amongst themselves, casting glances at him.

Ignoring them, he turned back to the text he was about to send: 'You're pretty persistent. Would you be alright with meeting me after class for a negotiation? I might be willing to ease up, maybe we could come to an agreement. My room is 1-4D.'

He pressed the send button.

1 "Born to Raise Hell" Motörhead; "No More Mr. Nice Guy" Megadeth (Alice Cooper Cover) – Definitely Yuuki's theme.


	7. Chapter 7 Crucible

**Chapter 7: Crucible**

The final text Eiichi received from Yuuki yesterday had been somewhat unexpected. He'd been hoping for another talk with his rival in an attempt to sort things out, but was really expecting more complications. Yuuki was pretty riled up about Eiichi's relationship with Kotonoha, even if it wasn't any of his business to begin with. What goes around comes around, and seeing as how he spent the entire last semester separating Kotonoha from her love interest, it only made sense the same would start for him now.

He dropped Kotonoha off at her student council meeting and began his short journey through the emptying halls, to room 1-4D.

Understandably, Yuuki was a distant admirer of Kotonoha's and he was only worried about her. Eiichi could only try to get him to see that there was nothing for him to lose his head over, but with Yuuki's fixation on her, this would be useless unless he presented some kind of outside interest. This time Eiichi would talk to him about Roka, but if Yuuki couldn't listen to reason, then he had only one other card to play.

He said he wouldn't tell anyone about Yuuki's secret, and he wouldn't. Even if there was any way he could prove it, he would have trouble living with himself after the fact. Besides, Yuuki had not lied, it had only been that one time he did it, and he was likely never going to do it again, simply the shock of discovery had been enough to send him running. Eiichi could still make a play out of this though. He wouldn't tell anyone, but he could threaten to tell. Yuuki would probably test this, but he could say he only needed to tell one person. Yuuki would be outraged, and probably still wouldn't believe it would fly, however the danger of discovery would be enough to make him back off. Eiichi only needed the power of suggestion to enforce the power of suggestion. He'd tell Yuuki that all he had to do was be honest with Kotonoha about everything that was happening and bring up Yuuki's reasoning behind all of it, and that it would be enough to have her asking all sorts of questions to him, one's Yuuki would have to come up with some good lies for, and just like himself, Yuuki probably hated lying to her. It was his best move if all else failed.

This meeting area Yuuki had set up was a little more last minute and remote than where they'd talked last. Still, he found it kind of strange for Yuuki to be asking him to talk in what would likely be a more crowded setting. Maybe he had a few things to do before they could get started, Eiichi didn't mind, he could wait.

He arrived at his destination, expecting to see a few students still cleaning house and packing their things, with Yuuki among them, awaiting his attendance. His eyes were greeted with empty rows of seats and not a single Yuuki to be seen.

The door had already been open and after making his entrance, he looked idly over the vacant room.

He must've been early, but for a time when classes were just emptying, this space must have been cleaned out rather quickly. Yuuki said this was his class, so naturally Eiichi assumed he'd be here. Maybe he was using the facilities. Or, he had forgotten, but that would be careless of him, though Yuuki was a pretty careless guy. He didn't think well of Eiichi, so maybe this was his way of adding insult to injury before bringing everything to a close. The thought irritated Eiichi a little, but if Yuuki wanted to behave spitefully, that was on him.

The area was quiet, with the dull mutterings of clubs in other nearby classrooms.

Maybe he'd left a note. Eiichi walked over to the sensei's desk, placing a set of fingers on its edge and scanning over the surface. It was clean, there weren't even books or stray papers on it. He turned and looked at the seats in the room again, looking for stray notes. There was nothing.

This made sense, if Yuuki had wanted to notify him to expect his absence, he would have just texted. There was nothing left to do but wait. If Yuuki was going to show, he should be here any minute.

Someone stepped through the doorway, but it wasn't Yuuki.

1Hair of a deep blue shade hung in loose bangs over turquoise eyes, with long strands flowing in a living surface of serene tides. The eyes felt over the room and him with an air of savory analyzation, rose pink lips pursed in cool amusement. The uniform hugged her willowy frame of harmonious waves, a black Sakakino vest cradling her mild and balanced bust, stockings slipped over a pair of athletic thighs. She stood looking around the room with hands clasped behind her skirt, in an almost playful fashion, like pretending he was invisible.

Like a force of nature, her presence demanded attention without request and exhumed only the uppermost qualities of feminine proclivity. Her stance that of stoic confidence, moving with the grace of a bird in flight.

Eiichi stepped away from the desk, "Uh, is there going to be a club meeting in here?"

He got his answer when she turned around, slid the door shut, and turned off the lights.

His vision became an immediate haze of green shadows over a black backdrop. "Oh boy…" aware of his current predicament, his hands instinctively raised a little, weakly establishing his personal space in the dark. She had not been close enough for him to pick up a reading, but now he didn't really need her to be.

"Hello Eiichi-san…" a watery voice sounded from the green shadows. "I didn't expect to find you here."

"Uh-huh…" he pivoted, swerving his hands through the empty space.

"It's good that I found you here, because I wanted to tell you something I've been meaning to for a long time…" her voice came from the direction of the front desk nearest the door.

Eiichi blinked his eyes repeatedly, trying to make them adjust faster.

"I haven't been able to stop thinking about you…" she was closer.

He could feel her output now, and if he could ignore her before, he couldn't now. It was not invasive, poking and grabbing at him, like the numbers of others he'd experienced. Instead of trying to pull him to her, it merely called to him, whispering in his mind what it desired, stimulating his curiosity, inviting him to explore with it, to seek more.

He backed up and bumped into the desk behind him, his hands white knuckling it for balance.

"I've always wanted to talk to you alone like this, because I never thought any other time would be the best way for me to express exactly how I feel," almost right on top of him now, the overwhelming, unforgettable scent of passionflower just under his nose, gripping his essence.

Eiichi breathed deep, his eyes getting wider with every word, his senses disobeying the frantic commands of his mind. He leaned back over the desk as far as he could.

Her reasons for being here were apparent, but she'd successfully set those aside, letting her own desires take the wheel, but not allowing them to drive too far.

Much to his dismay now, his eyes finally, at the most strangely inconvenient time possible, had adjusted and he could make out the capriciously daring face in the shadows, inches away from his and getting closer. Much like her output, she didn't touch him, driving his anticipation mad, making him want her to. Her hands remained clasped behind her skirt, leaning toward him, her head tilted in a posture of curios desire.

His spine shivered. He closed his eyes and could see shimmering rays of sunlight beneath a wavy surface.

"I know it's only our first time meeting, but I've always had to admire you from afar because you were always with other people when I saw you," strands of her ocean blue hair brushing over his chest. A hand raised, making its way to his neck, "I like you a lot Eiichi, and I really wish I could get closer to you, in a more intimate—"

"Yuuki put you up to this, didn't he?" he had to say it, he couldn't take anymore, it came out with more desperation in his tone than he wanted to let out, his chin turned to the side, trying to look away.

She stopped and stood up calmly, a dash of surprise in her expression, "Wow, you're sharp."

"I have that way about me…" taking his window, he inched along the edge of the desk and made for the door.

"W-Wait!" this was possibly the only rise anyone could've ever stirred out of her.

Eiichi thrust the door open, and charged out into the hall panting, unleashing some of the pent up ardor conjured by his seductress, "Alright, come out here you little runt! Is it really too much for us to have a civilized conversation!?"

He half expected it, there was no one, say for a few students staring at him some distance away.

Chest huffing and feeling pretty worked up, he turned around to see the girl exiting out of the dark room.

"He's not here, he only sent me," her voice cool again.

"So it was a setup…I just wanted to talk, and he pulls a fast one on me."

"He only means well."

"I find that really hard to believe," a little irked with this.

Her mind was an enigma of both disappointment and satisfaction, not at all phased with him turning her down, as if she had been expecting it, hoping for it.

Eiichi breathed a little easier, "Would you be willing to tell me just what he has planned next?"

"There's only one way you could get that out of me Eiichi-san…"

He gulped and forced a step back.

She was serious, but something revealed itself to him that it hadn't before. Though she wanted him, she also didn't want him. She was aware to actually break those physical boundaries with him would only bring about shame and guilt on them both. She wanted him, but she knew there was someone important in his life, and her concerns not only stretched to him but this person as well. In hurting them, she would also be hurting herself. Truthfully, all her advances had been her living out a fantasy as far as she was willing to take it. What confused him was wondering how far she had been willing to push herself.

She ran a hand through her pacific hair and the turquoise eyes fixated on him, "Eiichi, for what it's worth, I only went through with it to get to talk to you. I really meant everything I said."

Was she a ghost? How could a girl like her attend this school without his knowledge?

"I know…um, have a good evening."

"You as well…"

He couldn't take his eyes off her until she was gone.

Finally, he was left to configure the situation. As effective as this direct, and admittedly arousing attack had been, Eiichi was able to come to a conclusion. Yuuki was running out of ideas. Throwing such an alluring personality at him after all the rabble from before was his attempt at a checkmate, to get Eiichi into a position where he would have to back out on Kotonoha. What was there after this? That had to be the best he could do. Makoto wouldn't have lasted half a minute under those circumstances, only a girl like that would've crushed him into dust with a single word, before he could lay a finger on her.

It was time to get serious, Eiichi had to talk to Yuuki, even if it had to be through text only, he'd just put up with it.

Just as he was reaching for his phone, it went off.

There was a text from Roka: 'I need to talk to you about something. If you'll wait, basketball practice will be getting out early. I really need to talk to you.'

Now? It had to be now of all times?

He clenched the phone and looked to the ceiling, shutting his eyes. It would be better than dealing with his current problem, hopefully. He'd have to notify Kotonoha she'd be waiting for him this time.

He tapped on the pad: 'I'll be there in a few.'

* * *

He entered through the gym the same way as last time. Girls in uniforms with duffel bags had already been exiting in their little groups. Inside, there were basketball supplies still laid out on sides of the court, a few members carrying things here and there, among them was Roka.

He walked up to her and could already feel waves of despair. She looked up to see him and turned to look at the few that were left with her, "Give me a few minutes, I volunteered to clean the rest so they could take off early. When they leave, we can talk." Things had not gone well.

Eiichi found some bleachers to sit on, wishing he could use his ecig right now to cut the tension a little.

"See ya later Roka!" a few minutes later they'd gone and Roka came walking out from the set of doors toward the storage room.

Expecting her to walk up and sit next to him, she motioned for him to follow her.

She led him right into the storage room like before. After he walked past her, she used her foot to set a small brick in way of the storage door so it wouldn't close all the way and set off the auto-lock.

"It's better in here, in case anyone comes back, I don't want them to overhear this…"

He stood by, turning his head up from the floor, "What happened?"

2Roka walked around him, her head low so he couldn't see the look of shame upon her face. She stopped at a corner of the clutter in the center of the room and faced Eiichi. Her tension rose.

"I…I screwed up!" she thrust her fists down and turned away, pacing around the pile of goods in the middle to a side of the cramped storage room.

"Whoa Roka, what do you mean?" Eiichi stepped forward.

Roka stood on her side of the room, chest heaving, her tense arms jerking with the start of every outburst, "We had another fight…"

"Okay, just calm down and tell me exactly what happened," already picking up distorted still images of Yuuki in the library from her output.

"I met him in the library yesterday," she paced, her voice distressed, "I did everything you told me. I apologized to him and he actually apologized back, but then, when I tried to talk to him about the other stuff, he just clammed up!" her voice getting raspy. "He kept poking around on his phone and wouldn't even look at me!"

His breathing was getting heavy as well, but he risked walking over to her side of the clutter, he hung his hand on a large, standing foldout table, "Okay, okay, you have to calm down…"

"He just kept blowing off everything I said until I couldn't take it anymore! I just wanted to talk to him and he wouldn't hear any of it!" her eyes glassy, her fists beginning to shake.

Figures this would happen, Yuuki had set his eyes on Eiichi to get rid of him and now because of that, she was suffering. He must've been too focused on his little game with him to pay any attention to her. People and their petty games.

She dropped down, her butt landing on a large, rolled up mat. Knees together, her fists landed and stayed there. She shook and stared at the clutter in front of her, "I yelled at him…right in front of everyone…I called him a girl, _again_!"

Eiichi stayed where he was, fighting a wave of dizziness, "Oh Roka, why did you do that…"

"I don't know! _Okay!?_ " she looked up, the streams already running down her red cheeks. "I lost control _again_ , and I did it _again_ …" her chest spasmed, making her head dip down momentarily.

Eiichi needed to sit down, he figured he might as well, if he kept standing he might fall over. He plopped down in the space next to her on the mat.

Her shoulders jumped a few times, little whimpers escaping, before she leaned forward, burying her face in her hands, letting out one long, sorrowful gasp.

"You're just frustrated, I know…" he could remember a dark classroom, a young man on the floor slumped against a wall, the knuckles of one hand torn and bleeding, silently crying into his knees, ready to give up, "But you have to ask yourself, why are you crying?"

She didn't answer him, but then she felt one hand rest on her back. She turned immediately and nearly tackled him with a hug, burying her face in his coat, releasing all of her woe.

"What do I do…" her raspy voice struggling to speak.

"Sh…sh…" he smoothed her purple strands, his other arm around her back, considering how peculiar this situation looked, but what was bothering her was more important.

"How could I…hurt him like that…" she shuddered.

"Why are you crying?"

"I don't know…"

"That's not a good enough answer…you make fun of him for his appearance…you put up this wall of callousness, but every time I've seen you, you haven't been able to stop talking about him…why are you putting that wall up…Roka…why are you crying?"

She was trying to hold it in. He could feel the two sides fighting inside of her, a profound, unexpected attraction, being held back by fear of judgmental looks and opinions.

"I…I love him…" that's what he was looking for. "He's a stupid, scrawny pervert, and I love him!"

Her sobbing intensified, her petite form seizing under his arms.

"That's it, it's alright…"

He held her tight until she calmed down.

"What am I supposed to do?" she loosed him, wiping her eyes. "I keep screwing things up. I told him I never wanted to see him again…"

"I'm going to tell you a little truth. You may've heard it before, but I think you need to hear it again – you're a hothead," leaning into his words. "But guess what, so am I."

A little laugh escaped her and she sniffled, "No you're not."

"You weren't around for the mess I was in last year, I'm pretty sure for a short time people thought I had a screw loose."

Her red face gave a little smile, "So…the popular, cool guy Eiichi has a temper…"

"Mhm, and so do you, fortunately it only seems to come out when you're around him. He was in the wrong first, you tried to be patient, and then you made your mistake. But in a way, you could say he provoked you."

"Because I'm this way, why would he ever want to be with me?"

"You'd be surprised, there are guys that actually look for that in a girl. It means you care. There's no shame in it, you just need to take better care of yourself. The thing to remember about us hotheads is that we don't just get angry. We are easily moved by our emotions, we just feel more than others. When we hate, we really hate, and when we love, we really love."

She wiped her eyes, fighting another wave.

"Don't worry about Yuuki, I'll straighten him out, just give me a day…or two."

"You'd do that?"

"Yeah…"

"W-What will you say to him?"

"He and I've been having some differences of our own. I'll talk to him for you and it may help us to see eye to eye as well."

"Just, please don't tell him about this…"

"Are you kidding? He only needs to know what he needs to know. Someone has to beat some sense into him so he'll hear you out, and I'd be happy to do it, especially for a friend."

She looked down at her hands and rubbed them together in unison with her knees. Again, she tackled him with another hug, "Thank you…"

He returned the affection, "I know it's asking a lot, but try to cheer up a little and find something to distract you from this. Your basketball season is coming to an end, you shouldn't finish it this way."

"Okay, I'll do that," she whispered.

"If you'd like, I'll invite you over sometime. I think Kotonoha and my brother would love to meet you," one more troubled spirit for the Kuzoka household to welcome with open arms.

"That sounds good…"

Eiichi thought he heard footsteps from outside the door.

"Hey, we better get outta' here before someone sees us and thinks we're doing something we shouldn't be," this would make two close calls in one day, he was hoping it would be the last of it.

"You're right," she released him and stood.

Getting up, he followed her out, "Actually, if you want, I can wait outside after you get changed and we can go meet Koto. It must be driving her nuts that I keep showing up late. We could walk you home, at least part way," maybe her being a third wheel wasn't the best idea, but it wouldn't be for that long, and it was better than her walking home alone.

She had to think about it a moment, and then she smiled again, already looking a little more chipper, "Sure!"

"Besides, I kind of need you to talk to my brother sometime," he stepped over to the door and opened it for her, "I think he has a thing for your senpai."

"No way…" she turned.

"Yeah, I've only been able to tell him what she's like though."

"I have a few pics on my phone…" still sniffling a little, she pulled her cell out of her basketball shorts, "See? This one is when we were at the café across the street."

"Oh man, wave this in front of his face and he won't leave me alone until I give up her number."

Giggling some now, "How old is your brother?"

"Um, we'll talk about that on the way back…"

* * *

Out of breath, Otome shoved the door to an empty classroom open and slammed it shut. The lights were out, only a dim purple light from the evening outside crept through the windows.

Gasping, her chest heaving, she leaned up against the wall next to the door, staring bewildered into nothingness. She actually ran all the way from the gym to the main building, not really knowing where she was going.

She saw it, she saw the whole thing, she saw Roka and Eiichi in each other's arms. She had finished getting changed and was leaving when she heard their voices from the storage room. She recognized Eiichi's and while wondering why he would be in the gym, looked through the crack in the door to see…

Her mouth closed, her chest expanding.

Why would he be there? Why would he be with Roka?

Gulping down dry passages of air, she gritted her teeth, her vision getting blurry.

He was supposed to be with Kotonoha. Why was her chest hurting so much?

She lifted a hand, forcefully wiping her nose, trying to hold it back.

Every time she saw him, he'd been with Kotonoha. He didn't love anyone else, not even her, so why?

It started as a whimper. Shaking, her face jerked down, a gust shot from her clenched teeth, making a tensed sound, eyes wincing. She sank down to the floor in the shadows, hiding her face in her knees. Her cries echoed through the empty room, she didn't care if anyone heard, she didn't care anymore.

She had wanted him for so long now, knowing it would never be, and now… He was so good, actually kind. She thought they had so much in common, she hoped that one day he would understand her. If anything ever happened, she thought she might have a chance. She just wanted him to actually see her, but he always looked down on her because of what she did. She hated herself for it. And now, he was cheating on the one he supposedly loved. She wanted so badly for it to be her. She knew it was wrong, but how could she deny it now. Because he never would made her only want him more, but now, that had all been destroyed.

The crying quieted down, slowly. In the dark of the room, there was very little sound. Birds of spring could be heard chirping outside in the evening light. There was not a stir.

It started as a soft sort of hiccup.

" _Heh_ …"

The room was quiet again. The girl in the corner kept her face hidden.

Another one…and more. Like short little breaths that became louder, growing into throaty chuckles. She gasped, unable to control herself, Otome's shoulders jumped rhythmically, her hands tensing on her knees.

" _Hehehe_ …"

Her head whipped back with wide daft eyes, mouth gaping, white teeth, releasing a shriek into the emptiness. A tirade of cackles attacked the silence around her. She convulsed and hugged her knees close as the frenzy took control.

" _Ah!-ha!-ha!_ - _ha!_ "

How could she have been so stupid? How could she have been so blind? It was all so ridiculous once she really looked at it. She'd only been kidding herself, she could have taken him any time she wanted! She had been wasting her time fawning over him. She thought she had found something special, something she thought she would never see in another person, but just like all men, he couldn't control his urges in the long run. It only made sense!

The violent uproar lost its vigor with remaining, drained ejections. She gazed at the ceiling in a dazed euphoria, and then wiped her eyes, grinning out a few more chuckles, feeling very relieved.

She couldn't even remember why she had been thinking about him so much. He had tried to play the noble role, but really, he was no different than the rest of them. He hated Makoto, and yet he was just like him. If he wanted another girl so bad, he should have said so in the first place. He must be so tired of Kotonoha. Despite their happy little couple status, she was still such a prude to him, though she was always talking with the other guys. Otome knew she was no different.

She would show them, whatever she did, she would be doing them a service, freeing them from their stuffy little lives. She could have taken a picture! And posted it for all to see! Oh that would have been perfect! Maybe if she went back they would still be there…

Likely not. Her mistake was she had allowed her emotions to carry her away. She missed a perfect opportunity, but no matter. She didn't have time anyways, she had to be home soon, but that was alright, she was already getting some ideas.

She would get him back, the way he got her.

1 "Bella's Song" by Andy James

2 "Desperate Fishwives" by Old Blind Dogs


	8. Chapter 8 As Steel Sharpens Steel

**Chapter 8: As Steel Sharpens Steel**

'Alright, no more funny stuff! Meet me outside the cafeteria during lunch so we can settle this like men.'

Eiichi had almost forgotten about this thanks to the light hearted evening he spent with Kotonoha while walking Roka to the train station. Roka didn't talk much about Yuuki, probably because she was too concerned to bring it up that it would bring a damper on their meeting. Kotonoha had been very taken with her and after going their separate ways, immediately pointed out to Eiichi that they were very much alike. He looked at this humorously and figured it must have been his stroke of luck that he wound up being the one to help her, and his misfortune to be dealing with the object of her fantasies at the same time.

He waited outside by the building entrance among the benches, trees and flower planters, wondering if Yuuki was going to show. He couldn't help peering suspiciously at every student passing by, scanning their outputs, just waiting to be approached by someone else not already associated with him. He made the meeting time abrupt so Yuuki wouldn't have enough time to come up with a plan, but he half expected a coy return message stating something about the demand being too last minute and having some other nonexistent errand that needed taking care off. If that happened, Eiichi would hunt him down and drag his sorry ass away, kicking and screaming, it shouldn't take him long. Though it would be a lot of hassle and would make a lot of noise, and might come to blows if Yuuki had any buddies with him, and then Eiichi would be suspended again, and Koto would be angry with him, and he'd probably run into some trouble with his graduation, and blah, blah, blah…

Telling Kotonoha, again, that he wouldn't be around for lunch left her feeling concerned. He was neglecting one of the most important parts of his day to deal with this twerp, and it only frustrated him more. His excuse had been only telling her that there was a matter he needed to deal with alone. Keeping her in the dark made it worse on him as well, but he kept reminding himself just how awkward it would be for him to tell her that Yuuki, her friend since the school year started, has had a mad crush on her, and has been the one responsible for the mob of girls that did everything but rape him. He was temped, oh man was he. It would cut things off right there, but it would only serve to make Yuuki more bitter, and Chie might even come to hate him. And what about Roka? He couldn't do that to her after what he promised. To Yuuki as well, but it was coming, he was going to have to tell Kotonoha sooner or later.

There was no return message and Eiichi was getting impatient. He checked the time and it had only been five minutes. He'd give it another five.

His back had been turned, and from behind him he could feel vapors of malicious intent.

Remembering to not make it look too conspicuous, Eiichi turned around just as Yuuki had been approaching him, just eight feet away. Yuuki's face stared back with a grimace to match his frustrated mind.

"What were you planning on doing just now?" Eiichi motioned with his chin.

Yuuki walked up to him quickly and raised his hands just in time to attempt a shove. Eiichi's arm raised and batted them aside. Yuuki tried again, this time managing it, Eiichi balance himself, propping one foot back, the shove only made him lurch back a little.

"Oh! Oh shit!" a few students had already noticed what was taking place.

Eiichi backed up and kept his distance, circling Yuuki, his arms remaining at his sides, "What're you doing kid…"

Yuuki looked around at the crowd forming, and then rushed forward, raising his arm.

Eiichi figured Yuuki might've taken 'settle this like men' and little too literal. He probably should have said he only wanted to talk, but that had been going around so much lately, he was starting to think people weren't taking it seriously anymore. He waited for the right moment, then jumped to the side and began side stepping. Yuuki threw his overly telegraphed punch prematurely and wound up hitting air.

Yuuki was scared, but determined. This was not some momentary outburst of belligerent insanity. Like with everything Yuuki did, he had a reason.

"Kick his ass Eiichi!" the shouts were already starting up.

Yuuki looked around again, bewildered. Things weren't turning out how he'd planned.

"This is desperate, what're you trying to prove?" Eiichi continued circling Yuuki at a light pace.

"That you're a bastard!" Yuuki shouted. "You may have them all fooled, but you didn't fool me!"

"And so you want to pick a fight now?"

"If I have to!" Yuuki rushed forward.

Eiichi dodged and Yuuki nearly fell into a flower bed.

"I'm not going to fight you kid."

"You have to sometime!" he got up and made for Eiichi.

Eiichi stopped, let out a huff of air and watched the approaching threat, hands in his pockets.

His head whipped to the side when Yuuki's fist made contact with his jaw.

" _Ooh!_ " the crowd seethed and then started back up, the jeering intensified.

Yuuki stood in front of him, panting, arms out and legs tensed in his stance, waiting for it.

Eiichi looked at him, not touching the welt on his jaw, "Happy now?"

Yuuki only panted under the noise, Eiichi feeling his confusion.

Eiichi looked around, expecting a sensei to show up any minute. Figuring he still had an opportunity to make this right, he leaned toward Yuuki, who shut his eyes tight, ready in case Eiichi really was going to do something, "Take a walk with me."

Yuuki's eyes popped open. Baffled, he lowered his hands and looked at Eiichi, "What!?" He probably didn't hear right.

Eiichi raised his voice under the shouting, "Take a walk with me!" And without waiting for a response, he began walking to an edge of the ring of barbaric students.

Yuuki stared at the space where Eiichi had been standing, looking confused and really disoriented.

"Hey!" Eiichi's shout called his attention through the noise.

Yuuki turned to see him motioning for him to follow.

"What the hell!" "Rejected!" "That was ice cold!" disappointed shouts and complaints were called out by the more riled up members of the mob. Eiichi ignored them and pushed his way through the slowly dispersing crowd of students, Yuuki reluctantly following behind.

Hands still in his pockets, Eiichi marched all the way over to the spot where they had their first talk at the back of the main building, Yuuki tottering right behind him. When they made it, he stopped and turned, staring at Yuuki and making him add uncomfortable to his emotional list.

"You're a really smart kid, you know that?"

The compliment, coupled with Eiichi's glare only served to confuse Yuuki more, "After all that, you brought me here just to say that?"

Eiichi ignored the question, "I don't think many people could manage to pull together what you have, just to make things difficult on someone else. That took some planning and social knowhow that I never figured possible for someone who flies so far under the radar like you. But that scene back there," he pointed, "was pretty fuckin' stupid and desperate."

Yuuki irked that he was receiving a lecture from the very person he'd wanted to destroy, "Stop acting like you know so much about me! If I hadn't showed up, you'd still be living the popular life without a care in the world!"

"Oh! Well isn't that the pot calling the kettle black! You think you know so much about me? You haven't taken a single moment to stop and think about just what it is you've really been doing."

"I believe my methods are justified!"

"Justified enough to where you're actually harming others."

"W-What?"

"You should probably know that I'm friends with Roka, and she told me about the fight you guys had a few days ago."

Yuuki, taken aback, remembered the sheer embarrassment of the whole ordeal and could only make his blatant defense, "That's none of your business!"

"And so what I have with Kotonoha is _your_ business? You've got hypocrite written all over your face right now."

"You wanna' talk hypocrite? You've been pretending to be this helpful guy, but why don't you look at all the damage you've caused!? I knew some of the people that were friends with Sekai and Makoto. When everyone found out they were dead, it was horrifying! I learned Makoto had been stabbed to death and Sekai had been bludgeoned to death, and both you and Katsura-san were involved!"

"And that somehow makes us guilty."

"That somehow makes _you_ guilty. I know you attacked Makoto some time before it happened as well. You don't think that sounds a little suspicious?"

"Oh, me and only me! She was involved, but I get the blame. Why is it you're so fixated on me? Is it really just because I'm dating Kotonoha? Are you really that obsessed?"

"You're a horrible person, or else it never would've happened!"

"You wanna' talk to me about horrible people, walk a mile in my shoes! You're just finishing up your first year kid, you haven't touched the cusp of what horrible is. I've seen things that'll make your skin crawl," that one slipped out.

Yuuki, still fuming, spoke low and with harshness, "I also know that when you suddenly happened on the scene, Katsura-san gets depressed to the point of suicidal thoughts, and then suddenly Makoto and Sekai wind up dead. While you and Katsura have been living it up as celebrities, everyone who's ever been friends with Makoto and Sekai has been having to deal with their loss."

He had to get him to admit it himself, "Kid, there isn't much that I can do about that, but nothing is perfect like in video games or anime. All those people you think you know, aren't who they seem. You have some pretty good connections if you know everyone from their little crew, but you never spent enough time around them to really absorb enough."

"I was around them long enough to know about Makoto…"

"And since we're on the subject, what are your thoughts on Makoto anyways? Since he was once such a popular guy with anyone that would open their legs, despite having prior commitments, what is your take on that?"

The hatred surged inside Yuuki, much like the same hatred for Eiichi, only this one had a founding. Eiichi could sense Yuuki had not been a direct witness like him, however out-worldly Eiichi's experience had been, but he'd seen enough to put one, two and three together, and it was enough to send shivers through his spine, "I was not fond of the type of person he was…"

"That's putting it subtly. If that's how you feel, then stop attaching all these traits to me! You keep thinking I'm like Makoto! I'm not Makoto! If anything, you and I have more in common!"

"We have nothing in common!"

Eiichi smoothed out his thoughts, and re-approached the subject, "Ya know, during my short time around Makoto, I noticed a lot of people defending him just like you are. Since you're reluctant to speak your true thoughts, allow me to speak mine…" this was beside him and anyone else, what he was about to say, speaking of a dead man, "Makoto was a lying, possessive, devious, punk," his lips curling over his teeth, "I don't much think that he deserved to die for the things he did, but his actions caused a multitude of suffering. He was one that needed to learn the hard way about what the difference is between a decent man, and vermin. I could not stand by and watch him destroy someone without a single thought, so I grabbed the purest thing I could find, and held on for dear life. With as bad as things turned out, they could've been a lot worse."

He was trying to keep it together, trying to bat the memories away, but they kept closing in, giving him no space to think. Yuuki had him treading into territory he just simply wanted left behind.

Yuuki scoffed, " _Tsh_ , and just how would you know that?"

1There was a boom in Eiichi's mind. His hair stood up on his arms and neck as the shivers coursed throughout his body. His hands tingled, his dry tongue pasted to the top his mouth, his vision warping into a tunnel of blurred edges. He blinked and for a moment he thought he wasn't really standing in front of Yuuki at the side of the main building, but on the roof of it.

The sun had gone down hours ago, replaced with a full hunter's moon, alone, with no stars to accompany it. It was cold, colder than he remembered. The wind called to him in its low, perpetual exhale of foreboding. A girl's body lay on the pad in front of him, in a spreading pool of crimson, her stomach had been ripped wide open. It had never happened, and it was so real. Something else was up there with him, but he couldn't bring himself to look at it. There was the flash of a blade, abysmal eyes, and the ringing…

On some nights he would burst from his sleep shivering, not knowing why. He could not be in the dark, and fumbled to turn the lights on as quickly as he could, expecting something to appear as soon as he did. He would check his room before opening his door to investigate the hall, for an intruder that was never there. Then he would make his way cautiously to the kitchen. He would grab a knife from the cutlery block and always kept it in arms reach while he raided the fridge to eat and drink anything he could find, to get the taste of iron out of his mouth.

' _You've been acting strange lately…_ '

There had been days where he was afraid to fall asleep next to her, for fear that this might happen and scare her. One day he'd tell her…maybe…he thought he would…he wanted to…

"Hey…"

" _Huh_?" Eiichi blinked and his head twitched involuntarily.

Yuuki had been peering at him from behind his specs, "You look like you zoned out there for a sec."

Eiichi stared at Yuuki a moment, then he parted the opening of his unbuttoned uniform, and lifted the tee-shirt.

Underneath, across his abs, was a line of mangled, whitish tissue, about four inches in length, with white dotting from sutures. The stretched skin gave a minimal shine in the sunlight.

To say that Sekai had stabbed him would be an understatement. Given the length of the wound, she had tried to cut him open.

Yuuki's eyes fixated on the ugly blemish, mouth gaping.

Eiichi stared, "It's not your typical high school broken hearts story…Sekai used a kitchen knife to kill Makoto…it was the same knife that did this…we weren't involved the way you think we were…no good deed goes unpunished…"

The thought of Makoto, who had been the one person Eiichi wanted to rid from Kotonoha's life for good, whose blood had become mixed with his own, put a fowl taste of unworthiness in Eiichi's mouth that no amount of hate could remove.

Yuuki's mind had been in a constant stir of conflicting emotions, set in both what he believed and what Eiichi had been telling him, but now, it had become quiet, like when Eiichi first discovered him. Yuuki uttered an airy, astonished word Eiichi thought he'd never hear coming from him, "Fuck…" At this, he thought he was starting to rub off on him a little.

Eiichi lowered his shirt and stood there a moment before reaching in to his coat pocket and producing his ecig. He sat down against the wall of the building, arms on the rest of his knees, looking out at the perimeter of the school. He took a long drag, exhaling the memories, "You call me violent, and that's pretty much true. I am not sorry for what I did to Makoto, I enjoyed hurting him. With how I've gotten to know you, I thought you might understand that…"

He decided right now that he wouldn't threaten anything against Yuuki. If he wanted to keep attacking him, Eiichi wouldn't do anything to stop it, he had nothing left. Yuuki was one stubborn mix of contemplation and beliefs, Eiichi could only read him and hope for the best.

Yuuki stepped over and sat against the wall a space from Eiichi. He rested his arms on his knees just the same, "I didn't know…"

"You never asked…"

Yuuki stroked his hands together and then clenched them, "How did it happen?"

Eiichi took another drag, letting the vapors waft from between his lips, "If you want to know about everything that happened, I will tell you. But there are some things I'm going to keep to myself…"

Yuuki stared off, recapping his memories, "I don't understand how things could've just blown up so quickly. It was so…" Eiichi could feel the shivers in his output. "Just one day they were here, like nothing was going on…and the next…"

"There was a lot going on. Too much for even you to keep track of, you just couldn't see far enough under the veil."

2"Actually it was you," Yuuki turned his head. "Before you showed up, I was thinking about doing something about it, but then Katsura-san stopped appearing in the library for a while. I didn't see her for days, and the next thing I know, she had tried to kill herself. I was so blown away by that, I didn't know how to react. I guess that's why I got so angry…" he looked down. "I kept a close eye on you two, but it was hard with all the attention you were receiving, and then that one night…" his mouth rumpled. "When I heard that Katsura-san had been with you when it happened, it scared me to death…"

Eiichi's phone went off, he produced it and checked the message from Kotonoha: 'Where are you? I heard you and Yuuki were in a fight.'

"She was a real trooper…" Eiichi tapped his message: 'Everything's okay. It's not as bad as you think. I'm talking with him right now.' "She's a lot stronger than you think…a lot stronger than I thought… I think she proved me wrong more than anyone. When I thought I had been taking care of her, she was really taking care of me…"

His text tone went off again: 'I'm very proud of you Eiichi, good luck!' with an added smoochy face.

Eiichi smoothed out his voice as best he could, what he was about to ask would spook Yuuki, "I need you to tell me something. Do you have interests in her?"

Yuuki didn't move or look at him, remaining still and staring out at the perimeter wall, but Eiichi could feel his heart sink, and the still remaining fear calling him away from the question. What Eiichi showed him had been shocking enough to make Yuuki realize his resilience. He was just beginning to understand how wrong he'd been, enough to make him more afraid to answer, feeling he didn't deserve the gratification of voicing his own feelings. Even though Yuuki had denied it many times, Eiichi had only been honest with him. He had to be just as trusting.

"And if I told you I did?" he spoke reluctantly.

"Then I'd tell you that's something you'd have to get sorted out, but I'd be willing to help you. It looks like you'd need it."

Yuuki's head lurched back and his face whirled toward Eiichi, "What? What're you getting at?"

"If you like her, and you've been hiding it for a while, it's probably been slowing you down. It's definitely been making you do some wacky stuff. I'm thinking, you need to get that out of your system, stop holding it in."

"You're starting to weird me out now…" Eiichi could sense Yuuki had misunderstood him.

"Just hear me out," Eiichi patted the air, "I know people, okay? I just do, I can't really explain it any other way than that. When someone has a fixation like yours, the best way to deal with it is to express yourself. Keeping it to yourself is only hurting yourself. Why do you think artsy people are so passionate about their work? Because they place their fixations into their work. With your work, the way you've been going around trying to ruin things for me, you've tried to make like your fixation was me, but it was really Kotonoha."

"Uh…yeah?"

"Let's just say you succeeded. People see me as a loser now, Kotonoha hates me for whatever reasons and never wants to see me again. She's alone, broken hearted and on the rebound, now what do you do?"

"I-I guess I just go back to things the way they were…"

"Seriously? That's it?" Eiichi looked, "You just expended time and energy into some master plan to separate us that was successful, even against your own doubts. You've busted your ass and risked your own reputation in the process, and…you just go about things like it was nothing!?"

"Ah…well…I—'"

"Come on man, there's got to be a payout, some kind of reward for your efforts. There's still one more thing you need to do."

"I think my success would be reward enough. Actually, I'd try to help her cope."

"That's how you start, but if you really did this, not just because she's a friend or a stranger in need, but because you love her," Yuuki was feeling awkward, with some added warm and fuzzies at this, "you can't just sit back and let that eat at you. You're obviously a man of action, so you have to take action! What do you do?"

"But I saved her without her knowledge, how would she think I'm deserving of anything? You're methods were more forward and obvious than mine. I just stayed back and hid like a coward…"

" _Ah_ , there's no beating yourself up in this conversation," Eiichi pointed. "What you did, however unorthodox it was, took some brass. Sometimes staying back is the best thing you can do, no matter how bad things get. My dad could tell you some stories, that's if he felt up to it. It takes the most out of someone to do it, it takes a part of you away, but you keep moving." Eiichi took another drag and looked at Yuuki, "You're not a coward Yuuki. In hind side, if I had known you at an earlier time, we could've worked together. Though I'll admit, I was pretty skeptical of everyone back then. I probably wouldn't have the scar…"

"Yeah, but you said it yourself, I went about things pretty odd…"

"Yeah, what made you try something like that anyways?"

"Well it wasn't my idea originally, _got that_?" Yuuki defended.

"Okay."

"Um…my friends have been kidding around with me about it ever since Junior high. Because…because I'm short and I look…different. I've been picked on because of it most of my life."

"I'm sure the girls took a liking to you."

"They were worse."

"Doesn't mean they still didn't take a liking to you. People have trouble expressing themselves, so they can react pretty viciously. I'm sure the guys picked on you because they were jealous."

"Maybe…I got the idea because some of my friends were messing with me about trying on some of the maid outfits for the school festival last year. One of them was really starting to weird me out, like he was coming on to me."

Eiichi chuckled.

"That's not helping…" Yuuki said blandly.

"I'm sorry man, but movie stars receive a lot of attention and get in trouble all the time for their looks."

"I'm just so glad no one else found out," placing his head in his hands. "You have no idea the stress you put me under after all that. I thought because you were so popular, one word would mean the end for me."

"Yeah, it would've," Eiichi took another drag, "but I've never been popular before, so I wouldn't know how to use it even if I wanted to."

Yuuki shook his head, "Now that I think about it, I realize how stupid it was. I figured, all I needed to do was get close enough for long enough until Katsura-san left you. I thought with any luck that you would…you know…"

"Just how far were you willing to go?"

"Not _that_ far…" Yuuki shook his wide eyed expression.

"Well still, you would've only made Kotonoha jealous to the point where she'd probably pummel you. Oh that would've been _funny_! You show up to save the girl and it turns out you need saving from the girl!" Eiichi chortled.

"Yeah, just rub it in…"

Eiichi stared whimsically off into the sunlight, "Ah~, my cross dressing younger brother…"

"Shut up…"

Eiichi laughed, satisfied to be able to get a somewhat lighter mood out of Yuuki. He kind of wanted to mention that he had run in to more strange minds than he'd wanted to, and that Yuuki never matched up to any of them, but this would be crossing his own boundaries on what to keep secret. "Hey, we're all a little weird. It's what makes life interesting," speaking for himself as well.

"How did you know, anyways?" the curious question that Eiichi knew would eventually come up, had they ever made it to this point.

He really wanted to tell him, but that was just another can of worms he did not want to open up, "I'm…really good with faces. I'm serious, I never forget a pattern."

"But it could've been a sister of mine."

"Well, I met Chie before that, and she never mentioned a younger sister."

"I suppose that makes sense…"

With questions answered, Eiichi only had more to ask, feeling conflicted that he had to bar Yuuki off from receiving some of his own answers. He was still curious about his new elusive and interesting companion.

"Okay, and what about the girls?"

"What about them?"

"How did you get so many to come at us like that!? That was ridiculous!" Eiichi was actually getting excited for a change.

"Oh yeah…" Yuuki looked away, a nervous smile on the corner of his mouth. "Some of them were very willing to do it, but most wanted something in return…" he buried his head in his arms, "I've got cleaning duty and ad jobs in at least three different clubs for the rest of the year…"

"Wow, you are dedicated," Eiichi eyed him, exhaling more cinnamon vapors. "Let me help you out with those."

"I can't ask you to do that," Yuuki shook his head.

"Give your pride a rest. Yeah, you screwed up, but shit's going to get heavy for you if you don't have any help."

"No, I think it would be better if I paid for my mistakes."

"It's my way of forgiving you. Come on, if I help you, it'll get done in half the time."

Yuuki looked at him, "You'd do that? But I put you through so much crap."

Eiichi nodded, "Yeah, I'll help out. I don't have much else that I'm doing. But I'll have to explain everything to Kotonoha. She's been pretty bothered by what's been going on, and if I don't say something soon, it's going to be world war three."

"She's probably going to hate me now," he shivered.

"Not if I have anything to say about it. Hey, who was that one girl you sent at me?"

"Which one?" Yuuki said with noted humor.

"The one you sent to me when we were supposed to meet in that classroom."

"Oh her—, that was Fujiwara, Manami…" speaking slowly, annunciating the name with notable fuming attraction. Even her name fit her personality, "She's in school dance and the swim team."

Eiichi nodded with wide eyes, ' _Yeah, she_ would _be on the swim team_.' "How did you get such a smooth beauty to attempt such a lewd thing?"

"We've known each other for a while. Actually, she didn't want to do it at first and tried to talk me out of attacking you. She wanted to respect your relationship with Kotonoha, but she changed her mind and saw it as an opportunity to test your will. She figured if what I was saying about you was true, she wanted to see it for herself."

"Well when you get the chance, tell her she's got a gift. That girl was a mystery n' a half. With looks and grace like that, she should be the popular one. She'd make a superb dancer, or even a model. She had to be the most persuasive one you threw at me," people had always been so predictable to Eiichi, he couldn't remember the last time he ever met such a complex mind.

"Yeah…to be honest, I was pretty frustrated when she told me things didn't work the way I'd planned. She was only supposed to get you to cave and then leave before things got intense. She's actually a very nice person and isn't normally that way. I guess, if you could get past her, you deserve Katsura-san…"

Eiichi looked at Yuuki with fondness in his eyes, "In an odd way, I should be thankful then. What a test, she must've turned into a completely different person when she cornered me."

Yuuki chuckled, "Why do you think I picked her?"

Eiichi tipped his head in reasonable admission and took another drag off his vaporizer.

"How could you've not known that room was closed out from club usage?" Yuuki asked.

Eiichi chuckled, "I guess you got me there. I didn't think you'd be so underhanded to bait n' switch me like that."

"Yeah…sorry about that."

With a lot of unanswered questions out of the way, Eiichi had to get on with the business to address with Yuuki. He still wanted to work with Yuuki and Roka, but there was something in the way that needed to be taken care of.

"So, you have a crush on my girlfriend."

Yuuki flustered, bringing back some throbbing in Eiichi's head, "D-Don't put it so bluntly!"

"Hear me out, I know this is going to sound weird, but you need to express that - to her."

"You're losing me again…"

"I shouldn't have to spell it out for you man."

"No, I think you do…" Yuuki's confusion made him nod in contrast.

3Eiichi fiddled with his vaporizer, giving deep thought to what he was about to say, "Yuuki…there's no other way for me to say it…I'm gonna' need you to confess to my girlfriend!"

Yuuki blinked, his head cocking back like something had flown onto the lens of his spectacles. He gave a deeply perplexed look, like Eiichi had been speaking another language. Without changing, he spoke, pointing to himself and then to Eiichi, "Let me get this straight. You want _me,_ to confess _my_ feelings, to _your_ girlfriend?"

Eiichi tossed his hands up, "It seems that way Randy."

"Who-who's Randy?" Yuuki's accent made him stumble over the 'R'.

"Probably better you don't know," giving thought to the idea that he may've been watching too many American TV series.

Yuuki rubbed his head, "This is too weird…"

"I know, I know, but if you feel this strongly about her, it's the only other solution I can think of, unless you've got a better one."

Eiichi could feel the gears working again, Yuuki trying desperately to think up a less far-fetched solution, "But how do I do that?"

"Simple, you just go up like you would to any other girl and tell her."

Yuuki waved his hands, "But, it's not that simple! And Kotonoha is not just any other girl!"

"Okay, this is starting to sound a little unhealthy."

Yuuki let out an exhaustive sigh, "Not like that. Anyways, what would be the point? She obviously going to say no."

He knew Roka wouldn't say no…likely, but he couldn't tell him now. This was a hurdle that Yuuki had to face if they were going to get anywhere, "Think of it as practice."

"Practice!?"

"Yeah, listen, you've got to get over your feelings somehow so you can open your mind up to other possibilities. I know it sounds harsh, but that's the situation we find ourselves in here. You have to get over her, and confessing is a good start. If you don't, these strong feelings are just going to hang around for a lot longer, and if you find someone who wants to be with you, it's only going to pull you away from them. Believe me, there's someone out there waiting for you, and it wouldn't be such a bad idea to be ready for her. I'm going to guess this would be your first time confessing to a girl."

Yuuki blushed with sincere abasement, "Y-You don't know that!"

"I'm only guessing, but you just told me."

Yuuki turned away and grumbled.

"I want you to actually imagine looking Kotonoha in the eyes and saying those three special words."

"This is stupid…"

"Not those. Just, bear with me here," the term being literal for Eiichi.

Yuuki looked out from the wall. His face started turning pink and from inside his minds eye, Eiichi received stills of Kotonoha, her black hair flowing in the wind, gazing at him with her dark and innocent eyes, a very theatrical image that would be typical for Yuuki, being in love, but fitting for her.

"Heart pounding?" Eiichi asked.

"Uh, y-yeah—"

"Palms clammy?"

"Yeah—"

"Shortness of breath?"

"Okay! I get it!"

"And yet you still haven't answered my other question. What would you do? So say it."

Even though in the past week, Yuuki had gone through everything from crippling embarrassment, to gripping fear and burning wrath, he still held back when it came to the very reason he suffered those trials. It was an understandable struggle that everyone dealt with, even while pretending not to.

"It makes you nervous, and to be honest, I don't think it really goes away, but being able to do it a few times will give you a feel for how to go about things. Yes, she's not going to say 'yes', but at least you'll get a taste for it."

Yuuki was very aware of who he was telling this to, and was having trouble bringing himself to say it. Eiichi had high hopes that his frustration wouldn't fly up and cause him to storm off again, running away from his problems. If that happened, Eiichi would turn the tables and become the one doing the pestering.

"I'm sorry if this seems like a lot. I understand you feel pretty weird talking to me about this. But look at it from my perspective, I've had to deal with people fawning over her and giving her looks when they think I'm not looking, for months. Do you really think it bothers me to be talking to you about this?"

"I-I guess not…"

"Good, so _say it_ ," Eiichi demanded.

"I thought I already did!"

"You only made the implication. Come on, be a man. Be honest."

Just like with Roka, Yuuki was having trouble bringing it out. Eiichi wanted to see it again, that fire they both possessed that caused them to face their problems head on. It was that ability to take a step out in faith against all odds, in hopes that everything would work out, even if not in their favor. But it was fear that made it very unpredictable.

Yuuki turned his head up and looked Eiichi in the eye, "Kuzoka Eiichi…" blinking and looking away a moment, but reseting himself, "I am in love with your girlfriend, Katsura Kotonoha…"

Eiichi slapped a hand on Yuuki's shoulder and gave him a shake, "Now you just gotta' say it to her, but not so formally, okay?"

Yuuki looked down and breathed. He must've been feeling warm in the face, because the after affect of relief had caused some released strain.

"Why are you helping me out with this?" Yuuki muttered.

"I'm just that kinda' guy."

Yuuki began feeling the pangs of remorse, coming down from his emotional rush had brought back his awareness of everything leading up to this conversation. He looked at Eiichi, "I haven't apologized yet, and neither have I thanked you. You're not such a bad guy."

Eiichi looked back at him, "You're not bad yourself…"

While Eiichi went back to his ecig, Yuuki took his phone out and his output's alarm shot up to a level that put Eiichi back in the pain zone.

"Eiichi! Next period has already started!" Yuuki jumped up in a panic. "How did we miss the bell!?"

"Oh, okay…" Eiichi stood up in his lazy manner, pocketing his ecig.

"How can you be so calm about it!? It rang ten minutes ago!"

"It's cool, we'll catch the next one. We have some time, wanna' head across the street and get something to eat, you kinda' ruined my lunch. We can discuss our plan of attack, it's not over for you yet, kid."

"Plan of attack!? But we're missing class!"

"That's okay, I haven't skipped in a while. Besides, you're rollin' with me now."

 **AN:** Everyone, thank you so much for all the comments and positive feedback, it's really getting me stoked, and I'm glad the story is exciting all of you as well.

1 "Jacob's Ladder" by Chimp Spanner

2 "Sir Steve Huska of Bryce Canyon" by Old Blind Dogs

3 "What Goes Around Comes Around" by Nescobar-a-lop-lop


	9. Chapter 9 If at first you don't succeed

**Chapter 9: If at first you don't succeed…**

The halls bustled with students after the between courses bell. Eiichi had to rush to meet with Yuuki in a space on the second floor because they only had a narrow window of time. He took a different route to make sure Kotonoha didn't run into him along the way.

Yuuki was waiting at a corner where the hall made a right turn, standing around and looking the exact opposite of relaxed. He turned and saw Eiichi as he rushed up beside him.

"So why did you say to meet here?" Yuuki asked.

"Because Koto and I sometimes meet up the hall from here by the vending machines," he leaned, peaking around the corner. "Sometimes she brings friends by, so there's also no guarantee she'll be alone. If that happens, we'll have to try during lunch,"

"Maybe we should just try during lunch anyways?" Yuuki didn't sound ready at all.

"Nah, we're here now, and you need to get this taken care of," Eiichi wanted to get Yuuki to confess as soon as possible so he could work on getting him focused on Roka. Just now he realized, if she saw them together, not only would there be enough static between the two to make him woozy, but he'd have to come up with a story fast as to what they were doing. It would have to be the second or third story he'd come up with recently, "Yeah hey, I had to cover for you hardcore yesterday. Because of your plan to get me to defame myself by beating on you, Kotonoha heard about the fight and had a few questions to ask. I don't know how much longer I can keep hiding stuff from her."

"Even though you didn't give me a beating, Chie certainly did," Yuuki rubbed the top of his head. "I didn't think she'd find out so fast."

"Word spreads like fire. That text she sent me was not at all what I expected. She's just cool with anything, isn't she?"

"Try being her little brother."

Chie's text had just been another reminder to Eiichi of how off track things were getting, but whenever one problem was solved, two others popped up in its place. She had made a joke that Eiichi was cutting things close by trying to steal her objective, and should stick with his own so he didn't steal her thunder as well. Eiichi merely reassured her that was not his intention and that things happened to set themselves up this way. He said he would get back to working with Roka.

' _But not now. I gotta' help my crossdressing ex-rival propose to my girlfriend…_ '

"By the way, what'd you tell Katsura-san?"

"Not important," he left the corner and approached the edgy Yuuki. "Now I want you to take this seriously."

"How can I not!?" Yuuki looked up with wide eyes.

"Well, you did say it was stupid a few times. C'mon, you're bearing your soul to another, and trusting how they're going to handle it, that takes a different kind of bravery. Putting yourself out there like that is putting yourself in their care for just a few seconds. It can be very serious, on an emotional and physical level."

"You're not making this sound any easier."

"Just remember what I told you yesterday. You're confessing, and while you have to make it sound serious, it can't be a big deal in your head, even though it is— _I mean_ , just stay calm, okay."

"Okay…" Yuuki looked around the hall nervously. "I wrote out what I'm going to say to her, but I keep having trouble remembering it."

"Probably because you're so damn nervous."

"Yeah-yeah," Yuuki flexed his fingers repeatedly, his head jerked toward Eiichi, "I need you to look over it," Yuuki thrust a paper in front of him.

"Whoa, whoa, I can't read that, that's for her eyes only, classified documentation, I could be court marshaled."

"Come on, I'm floundering here," Yuuki pleaded.

"That's part of the experience man, standing alone."

Yuuki strained, "Just please, I want to make sure I remember it."

"No, if I take that, it won't be special anymore."

Yuuki's eyes grew keen, "Technically it's not special to begin with. Whose idea was this again?"

"Hey, it's for your benefit," Eiichi pointed, "I think you're making too big of a deal out of it, which is making it worse on you."

"You said it would be understandable if I was nervous. Maybe this is just how I deal with it, did you ever think of that?"

"Okay, fine! We'll do it your way, _gimme' the stupid paper,_ " Eiichi snapped it out of Yuuki's hand.

He smoothed it out and Yuuki watched as his eyes scanned over the page from line to line, muttering the words to himself. Then his eyes turned up at Yuuki from the page.

"This? You're going to say this?"

Yuuki irked, "Yeah! Is there a problem?"

Eiichi shook the page while speaking, "In a sonnet, Shakespeare wrote one of the most heartfelt proposals in all of literary history and it was written at an eighth grade level, _eighth grade Yuuki_! What is this?" swatting the paper, "No wonder you can't remember it," he handed the parchment back.

"What, is it too difficult for the school delinquent?" Yuuki mushed his voice.

Eiichi's sharp eyes leered at him, "I'm pretty sure the 'acrimony of your disrobed fidelity' will 'ameliorate' itself. If you say it like this, it's not going to be believable. Though your 'la douleur exquise' is an understandable position for you to be in. _I_ can't even pronounce that!"

Yuuki adjusted his tie, "Well, I am the librarian."

"I'm the older one."

"Are you as well read though?"

"Oh, just you wait, I'm going to drop some prose on your ass when this is all over," Eiichi peaked back around the corner.

Kotonoha was taking a little longer than usual and Eiichi wondered if there would even be time for Yuuki to make it with the 'how do you dos'.

"How can I be so nervous if she's already going to say no?" said Yuuki, who in his inescapable discomfort, had begun bouncing on his toes.

"That's just how it is, bearing your soul is daring work. Just remember to breathe and don't buckle your knees like that or you're gonna' go down before you get to 'smoothing her midnight fibers'—don't think that I missed that."

"Sorry, I can't help it…" Yuuki shook.

Eiichi turned back to him, "Okay, before we get the show going, tell me some of the things you like about her?"

" _What?_ "

"Lay it on me, I promise I won't freak."

"Why would you want me to do that?"

"I'm getting you warmed up. You've known her longer, but I've been around her more, so it's probably nothing new to me."

"Ah jeez, uh…" Yuuki, still bouncing, looked to the ceiling, trying to arrange his thoughts in the open space. Then he looked at Eiichi, whose eyes were bouncing up and down with his rhythm, "Okay, well I've only noticed it a few times. I didn't hear her all that well, but I use to pass by her in the library while she was reading, and I think she would sometimes quote the female dialogs out of her favorite romance novels."

"Mhm…" Eiichi nodded while placing his hands on Yuuki's shoulders to get him to stop bouncing.

"And when she takes her glasses off, how she blinks her eyes."

Eiichi breathed a little laugh with a reminiscent nod to the floor, "Yeah…"

"And when she holds her pencil in her mouth when she's really focused."

"Yeah…"

"And when she stretches after reading for a very long time."

"Yeah~"

"And…are you okay?"

Eiichi looked up from his trance, "I'm sorry, you were saying…"

Yuuki turned his head, uncertain, "I wonder if I should be doing this now…"

"Nah, nah, come on," Eiichi collected himself. "Okay, all those things, forget about them now."

"Why did you tell me to remember them!?"

"To remind you why you're doing this, it eases the tension. Now wash your mind of them, she's just another person."

"Why do I need to do that? I felt better talking about those things!"

"So you don't get all googly eyed and start giggling like _you're_ the school girl. There has to be a disconnect so you can think about what you're doing."

"Maybe you're the one making this more complicated."

"Maybe you just need to listen to what—oh, there she is!"

Eiichi had been looking around the corner when Kotonoha appeared by the vending machines. She looked around a little before operating a machine and then stood by it with a drink in her hand, likely waiting for him to show.

"Oh man, oh man…" Yuuki's flustered eyes locked on to his shoes.

Eiichi coped with the throbbing in his head, "Stay calm. Remember, she's just another person."

"Okay…just another person…" Yuuki edged to the corner of the wall.

"Go to it kid, sink or swim," Eiichi gave him a light shove and Yuuki's feet kicked off down the all.

1His legs felt lighter than they ever had, and he couldn't tell if this was a good or bad thing. He kept Kotonoha in his vision, looking to the side occasionally to remind himself of where he was. He couldn't remember much of his journey before making it to her, he must have glided right past all the moving student obstacles without even thinking about it, he had been afraid he'd bump into someone or trip on his way over.

Kotonoha's head turned and she recognized him immediately, "Hello Ashikaga-kun, it's nice to see you outside of the library for once. How've you been feeling, has anything been bothering you?"

That soothing, concerned voice caressed his ears, coming from a face of ceramic beauty. Such dark and mystifying eyes could never be so wholesomely welcoming on any other member of the female gender. He felt like just a boy now, in need of her guidance.

"Um-uh, h-hello Katsura-san. No, I don't believe so," his mouth felt so dry and cottony, he didn't know if he'd be able to speak well.

"That's odd, because I noticed you've seemed quite troubled lately…"

"Oh, I have? M-Maybe it's just things have been difficult. Um, I do have something I would like to talk about…"

"Of course," she blinked a few times and he thought his legs might give out right there.

' _Bend the knees, bend the knees…_ '

He'd known her for so long and it was happening, it was finally happening. He had the words, he had this, "K-Katsura-san…"

"Yes Ashikaga-kun?"

He straightened up, mouth tense, "You…you are, my ever…my ever…"

He had the words, but he couldn't remember them.

"My promise— _prominent_ …joy that is…sorrow of…ev-ever…lasting…" he swore he could hear his breathing in his head. Her eyes on him with that tiny smile, he couldn't look away to collect himself.

Back by the corner, Eiichi did his best to remain out of sight, but had to allow himself a little peak. When he did, he could see Yuuki's hand touching the lower pocket of his coat.

"Don't take the paper out, don't you fucking take the paper out…"

Yuuki fumbled, "M-My acrimony…"

"Ashikaga-kun, are you feeling alright?" her concern cut him off. Kotonoha leaned forward to look at Yuuki's forehead. "You seem a little discolored, are you getting a fever?"

She was so caring…

Yuuki leaned away, blatant nervousness painted his tense face as she got closer, "I-I don't know…I may've been feeling a little ill," he couldn't help being somewhat truthful with her, only out of pure enchantment. He did have a fever of sorts.

"You may want to go back to class and rest."

"Okay, I'll do that," willing to accept anything she said.

"But before you go, I just want to ask you, why did you want to hurt Eiichi?"

"Eiichi?" who's Eiichi~

"He told me you two talked it out and that you were very forgiving."

"I was~" more like a question than a statement.

"I don't want to sound offensive, and please forgive me if I do, but it must be so difficult living with such a severe Napoleon complex."

"Uh _what_?" Yuuki froze.

"He told me all about it."

"He did, did he…" one of Yuuki's eyes twitched.

"Oh no, I am bothering you," she set her drink down by the machine, "I want you to know that you can come talk to us any time you want. I know he can look scary, and that you two haven't been on the best of terms, but Eiichi is very good with people. He told me he was able to get you to acknowledge it."

"Yeah…" Yuuki's voice hissed through a plastered grin, "it's been so…hard. But that Eiichi… _boy_ , he really is a good guy."

She took his hand and held it in both of hers and Yuuki was willing to forgive Eiichi, and the entire world for his 'disposition', "You don't have to feel self-conscious, we're here for you."

One more look at that face and the whole world lost its value, but he knew his chance was over. The best he could do was collect what was left of his dignity and leave.

" _Uh-uh-um_ , thank you very much! I will definitely remember that! Well, I better get going so I can rest up good!"

He turned abruptly, not remembering where his surroundings were, and was greeted with an immediate close-up of a soft drink logo.

 _Wham!_

Heads turned at the noise.

"Oh my! Are you alright?"

Yuuki soon found himself stepping back into Kotonoha's hand, instinctively touching his forehead.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine. No harm done," his knee throbbed from hitting the coin return slot. Repeating himself with a little less vigor, "Well, I better get going. Have to lay low so I can fight off whatever it is I have."

"O-Okay, be careful…" Kotonoha let him go.

"See ya later!" he waved, trying not to limp on his way back.

Eiichi's bland expression greeted him on the other side of the corner, "Nice going Alexander _Dumbass,_ I heard that from all the way over here. I'm surprised you didn't get a free drink out of the deal."

" _Napoleon complex_?" Yuuki clutched his head, "I have a Napoleon complex!?"

"Ah hell…" Eiichi rubbed his own forehead because of a different pain. "I didn't think she'd actually mention it."

"Not helping Eiichi! Not helping!"

"Stop repeating yourself, it's giving me a headache. Anyways, what'd she say?"

"Um…" he looked away.

"I saw her hold your hand, so what'd she say?"

Yuuki changed his position of avoidance.

"Yuuki…"

He remained silent.

Eiichi tipped his head, "Yuuki…"

"I'm sorry! I couldn't stop thinking about all those good things you told me to say about her. That and this hallway is too crowded, I'm afraid someone will hear, it's really embarrassing."

"Oh yeah, I guess I should have told you to ask her someplace where you could say it in private."

"Yeah! That would've been nice!" Yuuki flared.

"Well, you wouldn't have had time anyways, and it might have made her a little nervous, but if it's you, I think she would have been fine. Whatever, there's always lunch."

They began walking on their way back to their classes, which were already starting to fill up.

"Lunch? This was a disaster!"

"Means next time it won't be a disaster, as much…kinda'…maybe..."

Yuuki took the note out of his pocket, "Can't I just touch it up and leave it in her shoe locker?"

Eiichi shook his head, "Oh no, you're going to do this upfront. You've got to face this confession head on. You're a man, so act like one."

"But I've heard that girls think it's mysterious."

"We're not going for mysterious. We're bringing out your expressions in full, it can be done with a love letter, but it's not the same. By the way, scratch your letter, it's not going to work."

"But what am I going to say? I worked hard on this…"

"That's why you adlib, you may not get to say everything, but it still comes from the heart."

"I have to admit though…" Yuuki pondered. "That was…kind of amazing."

Eiichi patted him on the shoulder, "You're on your way. Time for round two."

* * *

"Just give me the phone!"

"No! No! This is ridiculous!"

"It's not ridiculous, it's planning!"

"I'm not giving you my phone!"

"Yuu-ki!"

When lunch started, Eiichi had sent Yuuki a text with Kotonoha's number on it, surprised when he found out Yuuki had known her for as long as he did and never once received her number, even under friendly circumstance. He'd sent the message in hopes that Yuuki would agree to send her a message asking to meet him in the courtyard so he could speak with her privately. Yuuki had been completely opposed to the idea of Kotonoha receiving a text message from him in such an unexpected manner.

Just beyond the courtyard, at the side of a building, they were locked in a mortal combat of sorts, Yuuki pushing Eiichi's face away while holding the phone with his other hand as far out of reach as his smaller frame would allow, Eiichi making exhausted efforts to swipe it.

"You're only making it harder on yourself!"

"I don't wanna' do it!"

"And why not!"

"It's ridiculous and convoluted! I could come up with better!" Yuuki waved the phone as Eiichi's hand made for another swipe.

"No, you're plans would involve finding a bunch of people at your same height, making them all dress so they looked like you, and just confusing the hell out of her!" Eiichi grabbed Yuuki's wrist and pulled the hand away from his face.

"That's not what I would do!" Yuuki bolted away a safe distance.

"You're just angry because you didn't come up with it first!" Eiichi huffed, not bothering to chase after his equally stubborn cohort, "Jeez, getting you to do this is like pulling teeth. We did it your way, now we're doing it my way."

"Okay! But let me do it," Yuuki opened his phone and shook his head, "Man, this is stupid."

Eiichi wiped his face with the back of his hand, "Maybe I should keep record of how many times you've said that. It's only stupid because you're still nervous."

"What if she asks how I got her number?"

"We know each other now, tell her the truth, I gave it to you. After this, if she wants to ream me out, consider it taking one for the team."

"Yeah, 'cause you're such a swell guy," Yuuki tapped on his phone, "There, I sent it."

Eiichi stepped closer to pick up if he was lying, "So you really sent it?"

"Yeah! I know I pulled some stuff on you, but you could at least trust me a little."

"Good," Eiichi took his phone out.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"Wait until she answers back, then I'm going to send a text telling her I'm on the roof."

"Why're you doing that?"

"Because Yuuki, I've been avoiding her for long enough and frankly, it's making me a little anxious. You've got to pull through on this sometime or I'm out. No pressure."

"No worries," Yuuki grinned while making an impolite gesture involving a specific finger.

"Spoken like a true gentleman…" Eiichi, not looking up from his phone.

Yuuki's phone vibrated…

"It's her, she's on her way."

"Alright…" Eiichi pressed send.

A minute later his phone vibrated: 'Wow! Lunch on the roof? I've never been up there before, won't we get caught?' everybody was beating him up today.

Eiichi chuckled while writing his response: 'I understand, you're irritated. Just please show up, there's a reason why and I'll explain everything.'

Kotonoha: 'Well this time, you're going to have to wait. Yuuki wants to talk with me about something. Who knows, I might just lose track of time.'

As cruel as it sounded, she was only expressing her frustration. He had always been there for her in the mornings and evenings, she was aware that he had a life outside of their relationship, just as she did. He didn't know if she spent any of her lunches alone, but he knew she had friends. It was all the secrets. Honesty had been one of the virtues that brought them together, but life had found a way to tear him from that too, his good nature forcing him to keep the secrets of others from her.

Eiichi looked up from his phone, "Could you tell me, why Koto?"

"Where did that come from?" Yuuki asked.

"Well, what're your reasons? Besides the fact that she's just awesome, but why specifically her?"

Yuuki pondered, "Well…she's really kind…and we do have a lot in common."

"I suppose, but you can't go just based on similarities."

Yuuki raised a skeptical eyebrow, "You don't believe in that opposites attract junk?"

"I don't know. I guess I wouldn't say I believe in it one hundred percent. I think people just find the right one. Sometimes they think they've found the right one and commit to them too early. Sometimes they don't know which one is the right one. Whether they're the same or different shouldn't matter. There are good people out there, and good people should be with good people. The interesting parts are getting to know one another, whether you have the same interests or not. Aren't her and I a good example?"

"Now that you say it, I guess I wanted her because she was the only true person I knew…"

"There are more good people out there than you think. You may not even know that they're good because they hide it."

"You mean like you?"

"Sort of," he'd actually been thinking of Roka. "But aside from your reasoning, there shouldn't be any need for discernment. You like someone just because you do. It's like if someone were to ask you what your favorite color is, or your favorite thing to eat. How do you explain that? You can give reasons why, and what draws you to them, but how do you explain really liking someone?"

"You kinda' went the other direction on that one. Do you do this around her as well?"

Eiichi chuckled, "I use to, I guess I still do it sometimes. I mainly wanted to show you it doesn't all have to be elaborate descriptions and deep meanings."

Yuuki frowned, "By using elaborate descriptions and deep meanings."

"Do you ever stop being a smart ass?"

"Takes one to know one…" Yuuki looked out from the corner, " _Crap—_ she's here."

The two bolted for the wall, just as Kotonoha came walking from the direction of the doorway around the corner, in view of the courtyard.

Eiichi and Yuuki's heads appeared, one above the other, peaking around the corner.

She approached a set of benches under a squared arrangement of sakura trees, nearly in full bloom, and began looking around. Eiichi and Yuuki ducked back behind the wall before her eyes could scan in their direction.

"First I'm avoiding her, now I'm stalking her. This is a new low…" Eiichi said from his space on the wall. "You better get out there before she gets impatient and leaves. When you say to meet someone some place, that means you have to be there when they _get_ there," swatting Yuuki on the arm.

"That's not normally how I do things, how many times do I have to apologize?" Yuuki strained his whispering.

"Nothing you can do about it now, you're gonna' have to explain yourself somehow," he grabbed Yuuki and pushed him to the corner. "Remember, no twenty-five yen words, breathe, and you're just talking to her. Stop her when you get the chance so you can say it. Go-go-go…" giving him another shove.

After Yuuki took off, Eiichi, happy to not be dealing with Yuuki's nervousness walloping him over the head for a few minutes, had peeked around the corner when he thought it safe and for a moment, found himself marveling at the sakuras.

Eiichi knew that Yuuki had been envious of his romantic status with Kotonoha, but suddenly, he was feeling a little envious of Yuuki to have had such a well stage set. Eiichi's confession had been nowhere near as romantic, not what Kotonoha or any girl like her deserved, and it was his fear that his special way of doing things had only created the impression that life with him would only mean living life on the edge for her.

Yuuki stumbled out to the courtyard and attempted to keep his gait smooth as he approached the beauty standing beneath the sakura trees. The pedals were too fresh to be falling off their buds, to create a cliche that Yuuki was very familiar with, but the scene was beautiful none the less.

"Hello Katsura-san," he gave a little wave.

Kotonoha turned to greet him, "Ashikaga-kun, I didn't think I'd be seeing you again today. Are you feeling better?"

"Oh yes, your advice really helped. A few hours with my head down and I felt right as rain," rocking a fist and feeling his words couldn't sound anymore fake.

"I hope you didn't get into trouble for sleeping in class because of my advice," she was so thoughtful…

"Ahm…n-no. I made sure of that…"

"Oh, well that's good. So what did you want to talk to me about?"

Birds chirped with the light droning of afternoon traffic beyond the school.

Yuuki scratched a displaced finger over his cheek, "Um, what I wanted to talk to you about?"

"Yes…" Kotonoha gave a gentle smile and nod.

"Uh…I-I-uh…"

He should make eye contact, should he? Maybe he shouldn't, last time had been enough to ruin things.

Yuuki's eyes rolled up toward the trees, "My, the sakuras look really nice this year."

"Oh! Yes, yes they do," Kotonoha smoothed her gaze over the pink buds and fresh petals.

It was quiet enough for Eiichi to hear them now, and he was currently fighting the urge to bash his head against the brick wall behind him, ' _Stupid, stupid, stupid_ …'

"A-And the weather's been nice too. It doesn't look like we'll be getting any rain before the graduation."

' _That's great Yuuki, you'll make a fine weatherman someday_ …'

"Mhm," Kotonoha nodded, "Eiichi isn't very fond of it, so it'll be good for him as well."

Yuuki grew more reluctant, that one hurt, even if Eiichi was the one helping him out, "Um…he doesn't like rain?"

"No, it um…" putting a finger to her lips, "It gives him headaches. He's very susceptible to moist weather."

Eiichi touched the back of his head to the wall, looking up at the small white clouds. She covered for him so well. Though whenever he was around her during a downpour, things were that much better.

"Oh…" Yuuki cast his eyes down, feeling more defeated, "I guess some of those rumors about him faking weren't true…"

"No," Kotonoha shook her head, "they're not. I understand that's what everyone believed about him for a time, but he really does have a disposition. It was very hard for him. A little bit like what you're going through, Ashikaga-kun."

Yuuki flustered and nearly lost his footing.

"You shouldn't be so angry with him. I believe that you two have more in common than you think."

He blinked sadly, frowning at his shoes. From around the corner, Eiichi listened intently.

"Is that why you wanted to talk to me?" she asked.

Yuuki now had something more important to get off his chest.

"Um…yeah…" Yuuki muttered. "I've been worried that I brought back some of that. You two have just started something good, and I fear that I was so angry because of my…disposition, that I just brought back everything on you two. I just wanted to…apologize for that. I'm very ashamed about it," he kicked his heels together and bowed, his waist bending nearly at ninety degrees, his head of semi-lengthy, brown locks hung in front of her.

He felt a delicate hand flutter to his shoulder, and a dulcet, pleading voice met his ears, "Please stand."

When he did, Kotonoha's face was much closer than he'd remembered, her dark, yet forgiving orbs on his.

"I speak for Eiichi and myself when I tell you we forgive you. You have been such a kind friend to me this past year Ashikaga-kun, and I cannot see how you could do any wrong that is unforgivable. I would like, if you could, that you join us more regularly. Please talk to Eiichi when you get the chance, I believe you two could become very good friends."

"Would he be willing to do that? He seems like he has a short fuse."

' _You little_ …' Eiichi cringed.

"I know he seems that way, but if he is, it's not for the reasons you think. He's really a kind person, and only wants the best for others."

"Okay…I'll tell him that when I see him next."

"Have a good rest of the day Ashikaga-kun, I hope to be seeing you soon," her hand brushed off his shoulder as she walked past and headed for the door.

When Eiichi heard it clank shut, he rushed to Yuuki, who stood at his place in the courtyard, looking at his shoes again. As he got closer, Yuuki's depression began causing him more pain than his fear and irritation.

"Did you get all that?" Yuuki asked the approaching footsteps.

Eiichi placed himself calmly right in front of him. He looked at Yuuki and then to the door where Koto had left.

"You had your window," he said through the thumping in his head.

"I don't know, it just felt wrong…" Yuuki shuffled a foot, not looking at Eiichi.

"But I gave you permission…"

"I can't…I can't do it…she's yours…"

When they had talked yesterday, Yuuki's remorse had been very present and Eiichi knew that he was regretting all of his actions, but now, it was overwhelming. Yuuki didn't feel worthy at all, for Eiichi's companionship or Kotonoha's kindness, and he was ready to give up just as well.

"And you just want to live with that? I can guarantee, it won't be easy to let go."

"Yeah…" Yuuki breathed.

"After everything, you're just going to give up, just like that."

"You were right, you were right all along, and I just wouldn't listen. Yes, I'm giving up…"

He had to get Yuuki back in, if not for him, then for Roka. No! For both of them. What he was trying to get Yuuki to do sounded so strange in his head, but he knew it was right.

Eiichi placed a hand on Yuuki's other shoulder, the one Kotonoha didn't touch, "Hey…"

Yuuki looked up at him.

"You heard her, I forgive you. I told you I'd help you out and that's exactly what I'm doing. Forget what I said earlier, I'm not going to stop until you finally say it to her. You think I'm doing this just to satisfy my own ego? To make myself feel all good inside because I helped someone open up their eyes?"

Yuuki looked away, "Well—"

"That's just a perk. You need this man. If you say I'm right about everything, then I must be right about this as well."

"Did you hear me? I said it doesn't feel right."

"Stop relying on just your feelings. I know about feelings, I also know if people live their lives based on feelings, they're going to be very miserable. Sometimes you wind of doing things that don't feel good at all, but they're good for your, so you do them anyways. I'm trying to tell you this will be good for you in the long run. It's uncomfortable, it's embarrassing, and you may not feel better about it when it's over, but you'll eventually grasp what it is you've accomplished."

"But it's over, I tried again and it still didn't work…"

"Don't say that, you do not want to see that side of me. Don't let me hear a person with your skills and determination say 'it can't be done'."

Yuuki sighed, "What am I supposed to do then?"

"You try it again, and again, and again, until you finally get it out. Relationships don't just happen as long as you obsess about it, they take effort. Sometimes, depending on the girl, even if she says no, you do it a few more times, just to make sure. It's embarrassing as hell, but worth it. Eventually you're going to smooth out, and it won't be such a big thing. You're going to confess to her. Even if I have to drag you there, and you know I will."

"I think it's because she's yours, that's why I'm having so much trouble. I think…I think I need…"

"Ah great…" Eiichi groaned, "you're gonna' tell me I have to hold your hand, aren't you…"

"Regardless, we're out of time, it'll have to wait until tomorrow."

Eiichi let go of his shoulder and took a deep breath, "No we're not."

"And why is that?"

2"Because I sent her that text saying I'd meet her on the roof…" a bone chilling, nervous grin spread itself on Eiichi's pale face, "And she's gonna' kill me if I'm not there…"

"We gotta' go!" Yuuki panicked.

"Alright, smoke 'em if ya got 'em!" Eiichi was the first to bolt for the door.

He held it open as Yuuki ran through and then followed behind.

The halls had minimal clusterings of students, who observed as the two came charging through. They had to take the long way again, to avoid running in to her.

Thanks to a couple years of jump rope and working the pad, Eiichi was having no problems. He wasn't a fast runner, but his stamina could carry a couple miles. In moments, he found himself traveling past Yuuki and soon leaving him in the dust.

He slowed down and looked back, "Come on, run faster! I know you can do better than that!"

Yuuki heaved breaths in and out of his mouth, almost wheezing, his hands swinging up and down in front of his face, "I'm not my sister! She's the athletic one!"

"Pick up those feet! If we hadn't stood around talking, we could've been there by now!"

Yuuki spoke between exhausted breaths, "This is…too much work…for a confession…"

Eiichi rounded to the staircase and waited for Yuuki to make it to the first step and they were on their way up the flights. Eiichi was taking two steps at a time and waiting on Yuuki at the top of each flight. Yuuki tried feebly to do the same, stumbling here and there, Eiichi being thankful his self-defeating depression was no longer a problem, but worried Yuuki might actually hurt himself and having to fireman carry him the rest of the way.

They were almost there, they had two flights to go and were halfway up the second when Eiichi had been looking up. A head of black, long hair materialized from behind the walled arm rail, headed upwards, in their same direction.

On the last three steps, his foot kicked one and he toppled forward, laying out on the flight landing on his side.

"Eiichi!" Yuuki had been a few steps down from him when he made it and saw who'd been waiting, causing him to trip and fall on his face, arms splayed forward, next to Eiichi.

Kotonoha had turned and faced the two klutzes that laid themselves at her feet, "Eiichi, I thought you said you were on the roof…"

Yuuki lifted his head slowly with a groan, adjusting his thankfully unbroken glasses.

"Uh-juh-I-uh," Eiichi's hands fiddled around before he propped his head on one fist, "H-hey babe…"

The one word he hated to hear out of anyone's mouth, and in his panic, it just happened to be the one that came cavorting out of his. Suddenly he wanted to get his hands on a bottle of mouthwash as soon as possible. He could tell she didn't like it either.

"Babe?" tipping her head to the side, "What happened to Koto…and why is Ashikaga-kun with you?" she looked at Yuuki. "Ashikaga-kun, when I said 'see you soon', I didn't mean in five minutes."

They got up and began dusting themselves off, whispering.

"We're in trouble now Yuuki…"

"Just do your thing n' play it cool…"

Eiichi stepped forward, feeling her curiosity and confusion frisking the two of them, "I know that I said before that I would explain some things, and I will. But first we have something to get out of the way," he turned and looked at Yuuki and then back to Kotonoha. "We should probably step out for this."

* * *

Under a clouded sky, on the sunlit roof of Sakakino Academy, there was a subtle breeze to go along with the events about to take place. Kotonoha stood facing the two chums with her hands clasped together.

Yuuki, standing just in front of Eiichi, smoothed the sides of his slacks, not really sure what to do with himself. Eiichi, off to Yuuki's side, kept his hands in his pockets, eying the two.

"Uh, Koto…Yuuki here has something to say to you…" Eiichi motioning with a nod.

Standing in his place, Yuuki looked up to Kotonoha, when he felt Eiichi's hand give him a third shove forward, making him turn his head.

" _Would ya quit that?_ " his voice strained.

Eiichi gave a momentary smile to the confused Kotonoha.

Yuuki positioned himself in front of her and checked his uniform before turning his wary head back on his guardian. What followed after was a barrage of minimally coherent hisses.

" _Back up a little_ …"

" _I'm gonna' hear it anyways!_ "

" _You're cramping my style!_ "

" _You needed me to be here!_ "

" _I didn't mean so close!_ "

" _Just shut up n' say it!_ "

Kotonoha watched the display, wide eyed and blinking.

The two collected themselves, Eiichi looking idly around the roof, Yuuki smoothing his uniform again.

When Yuuki stepped a little closer, Eiichi focused. Yuuki took one more look into Kotonoha's eyes before promptly bowing again. The wind brushed his locks slightly as they hung.

"Katsura-san…I have been in love with you ever since the day we first met…" during this period, Eiichi watched as Kotonoha's astonished eyes never left the top of the head on the boy in front of her, her mouth parted. "Every day I saw you, every brief amount of time we spent together, I only grew more fond of you…it was something that I had no control over…and I know what your answer is going to be. I just wanted you to know…and I am sorry if it troubles you…"

The wind blew and the silence began its long stretch.

Kotonoha had still been staring with broad confusion, when her mouth shut, she blinked, and looked to Eiichi. He managed a nervous shrug and a grin, before she cast her eyes on Yuuki again. Repeating herself, she looked at Eiichi again…then back to Yuuki.

She remained calm and steady, but her output made Eiichi feel invisible forces pushing him in many different directions. She had received many a love confession, especially since starting her days with Eiichi, but none of them as bizarre.

When Eiichi thought she might do another retake, she spoke, placing her hands over her chest, "That is very kind of you to be honest with me about your feelings, Ashikaga-kun. I know what it's like to have that trouble on your shoulders. But you are right, I cannot answer your feelings for me. I belong to another," awkwardly side glancing to 'another', being just a few feet away. "I am sorry, but you should know that this does not change what I said earlier. My offer still stands, and I hope it would not pain you to be around me."

Eiichi touched his head, _feeling_ the pain in Yuuki's silence before he spoke.

"It may be well for me…" speaking to the concrete pad. "Maybe over time, I can learn to leave them behind…"

"And develop a lasting friendship."

"Yes…"

Eiichi saw Yuuki's fists clench against his hips. He knew Yuuki didn't expect it to hurt this much. He wanted to place another reassuring hand on Yuuki's back, but he stayed out of it, this was their time.

Kotonoha looked to Eiichi, not really sure what to do next.

' _Should I_ …' she focused.

Eiichi nodded.

Kotonoha placed both her hands on Yuuki's shoulders, causing him to straighten out. She stepped closer and folded her arms around his neck. Yuuki's face grew flush, his mouth parted with astonishment in his eyes.

"I want you to know that you are my friend now, Yuuki…" her voice in his ear. "That's just as important…"

"Me too, little brother," Eiichi added.

"Ah—" Yuuki shuttered and his mouth curled, blinking back tears against the sky. His hands climbed to Kotonoha. He buried his face in her shoulder and let out a few strained breaths.

When his hands loosed, Kotonoha stepped back, palms still against his shoulders.

"I hope to see you tomorrow, you're going to join us for lunch, and that's not a request."

Yuuki breathed a laugh, wiping one of his eyes, "Okay…"

"And we will both be here waiting for you— _won't we_?" turning a glare on Eiichi.

"Um-uh-yup, mhm…" Eiichi nodded frantically.

"So please, don't avoid us…"

"I won't, I promise…" Yuuki's glassy eyes stared back. "I better go…you guys have a lot to talk about…"

"Please take care of yourself…"

Eiichi grumbled, ' _I fight and stress with the kid for two weeks. She just gives him a hug and everything's A-okay_ …'

She let him go and watched as Yuuki began his slow walk back to the roof access door, his eyes likely gazing dejectedly to the pad. When he made it, and the door shut behind him, Kotonoha continued to watch.

"A whole year and I never imagined…" she said. "Maybe I missed all the signs, but you would know more about that, wouldn't you—'"

She had turned and the crown of Eiichi's head now greeted her sight, in a full bow.

"Katsura Kotonoha, I love you!"

As before, her wide eyed stare of astonishment locked on him.

She blinked, "I think I'm going to stop drinking the water here…"

"What?" Eiichi craned his head, still in his posture, "I confess and that's all you have to say?"

"Well, you're kinda' late, don't you think? You already confessed. Remember what my answer was?"

Eiichi stood, his eyes looking around, "Yeah, I know, but…"

"What has gotten into you two?" she stepped forward and took his hand. "First you show up with Yuuki, and now this? Are you about to have another seizure?"

"No, no I'm not, I just…" he sighed, "I just wanted a…normal confession…"

3"A normal _what_? Come on, sit down," she motioned him over to the benches.

"Yuuki has been making me think a lot lately, about how everything turned out," he plopped down, her sliding up next to him, "It's like, because I can read people, I only manage to get myself in trouble, which winds up getting you in trouble. I just wanted something normal…"

She held his hand in both of hers, "Is this why you've been asking me all of those questions about your abilities?"

"I guess…" he shook his head, staring at the pad.

"Can't you see that I don't care about that? If I did, I wouldn't have given you my reply. I've thought about it too, and I think I've come to realize, there is nothing normal…Eiichi, look at me," she placed a hand on his face, "Tell me what is normal, and don't use yourself as a counter reference," she added with a note of humor.

Eiichi breathed a laugh, "I…I don't know…"

"See, not even the master lie detector can answer that one. Can there really be anything normal? Before I even met you, I couldn't make friends, it all had to be done for me, and the guy I was dating apparently could not control his sex drive to save his life, and I was too attached to pull away from all of it. I was so displaced, I didn't even know how to take care of myself. I nearly killed myself because of him. That's what you're worried about, isn't it? Tell me what is normal about any of that."

Eiichi's head moved with her hand still on it, looking, feeling rather ridiculous for his neurosis.

She curved her head to the side momentarily, "You dummy."

Kotonoha leaned forward and he could smell the tranquil, enrapturing scent of hydrangea before a rain. He felt her breath on his mouth before giving in to her pleasureful mercy.

He had not received a kiss like this from her in a while, and as the connection itself was prolonged, Eiichi could feel them both becoming a little hot and bothered.

She broke away and looked at him, "I love you too…and I'll say it as many times as I have to, to get it through that mixed up head of yours," poking him gently. She scooted up close, like on their first date, and took his hand in both of hers again, resting her head on his shoulder, "If the rest of the world is normal, then I'm happy with us being the only weirdos in it."

"Torio too."

He felt her amusement rise and her body tremored next to his, "Yes, Torio too…I love you. Nothing can take that away…"

Eiichi squeezed her hand and laid his head on hers, but then remembered there was something else he needed to do, and he took out his phone, letting Kotonoha see what he was doing: 'I know you need some time alone, but we're not done yet. I have something to tell you about, but only when you feel up to it. Let me know when you're ready.' And as an added measure to make sure he would show up. 'There is someone out there, waiting for you.'

"Maybe he'll find it annoying now, but it's good enough bait."

"So were you helping Yuuki out this whole time?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"And you didn't want to tell me because you didn't want to ruin it for him."

"Yes, but it's a little more complicated than that."

"It must have been important to you, for you to have brought him to me, just so he could do it. It looks like you two became friends sooner than I thought."

"Well, we—"

She looked up and touched his cheek again, staring at him with those mystifying eyes for a very long time, "Look at you, you're so ridiculous…" his cheek squished against her hand "…and sweet."

"Can I at least be bitter sweet?" he muffled.

She giggled, "You can be whatever you want, but I'm staying right here," pressing against him again, stroking his hand. "You can talk to me, I don't care what it is. Yes, I'll have my thoughts, and you'll know them, but whatever you keep as a secret will stay between us. You should expect me to do the same."

"That's good," he sat up and took her shoulder, "because there are some things that I need to tell you about. Promise you won't be mad."

Kotonoha laughed, "How am I supposed to do that when you'll know?"

"Humor me…"

* * *

"Do you even know how much time this will take!?"

"I am very much aware of that! Seeing as how we've all been doing our parts, I could only expect you to do the same!"

The Student Council meeting room, a separate place set aside for the lively discussions of this specific group. With its own space on the school map and its own label above the door, that it is such a place of important function for the student body is why it was so well ratified within the walls of Sakakino. When many other clubs had rented spaces and could be disbanded for one reason or another, this was one of the few that remained for the efforts of all the others.

It was designed much like a corporate board room with a long, polished wood table stretching out in the center of the room, chairs seated in rows along it, a podium overseeing the table from one end, in front of a white board, and extra singular school desks and chairs, placed randomly and in separate corners. Though put together somewhat haphazardly for high school students, it put off the same sensation of relevance necessary for the importance of its duties.

The familiar members of Otome' posse, also members of the council, routinely went about their duties in their own places. One was seated at the broad table, filling out forms. One had been transporting forms to a wire basket on a desk by the door, labeled 'Outbox', and occasionally accessing a set of filing cabinets against one of the walls. The third sat at a desk in the corner, logging more information. As the shouting commenced, all three labored about in anxious silence.

Locked in a bout of irate conflict by the podium, Kotonoha and Otome took turns slinging aggravated statement after aggravated statement at each other, Otome apparently on the losing end, yet again. As the working members continued, each contemplated in their own thoughts, the relationship between the haughty Otome and the newfound, aggressive Kotonoha, whose plans to improve the operations of the council had been bearing better fruit in the past few months, against Otome's judgment, only requiring the cooperation of all its members. As of late, their arguing had become even more incessant, and each seemed to be getting equally more agitated with the other.

"It's not as simple as you think!" Otome defended.

"I never said it would be simple! But had you not waited this long, it would have been a lot easier!" to actually hear Kotonoha's voice raised had taken some getting used to, for all of them. "It's Friday, these forms are due tomorrow! If you start working on them now and take them home, you should be able to finish them in time."

"I cannot be expected to fill these out in such a short amount of time!"

"You should have thought of that when it was assigned at the beginning of the week! We have received every club's end of the year evaluation form, and you've only done a few!"

"I have other plans outside of school!"

"Basketball season is over Katou-san. If I'm correct, you don't have practice anymore before your closing ceremonies. I don't want to assume anything, but there is no way you couldn't have found time to finish these forms before the end of the week."

Otome blushed with guilt, "Finals are coming up too, Katsura-san! That would be the issue why! If you had ever joined a sports team, maybe you would understand!"

Kotonoha jutted a hand out to the populated meeting room, "Look around Otome! Everyone has already finished what was assigned to them. They're getting assessment forms ready for the end of the year. If you had not fallen behind, we wouldn't be having this discussion."

Otome didn't have a reply to this and simply stewed at Kotonoha, feeling like a scolded child.

"Know that if this does not go through, we will all take the hit for it, but the guilt will rest on you. I shouldn't have to keep saying it, get the work done and enjoy the rest of your weekend, we are not having this conversation again," Kotonoha grabbed her tote bag off the floor, "I expect to see those forms in tomorrow."

The still fuming Otome stared at the door long after it had been closed. The rest of the girls cast timid, unnoticed glances at her while they milled about.

"Maybe you should listen to her Otome…" one of them spoke from the table. "Things have been picking up better ever since she took charge…"

Otome unclenched her fists and left her hunched posture.

The one who had been carrying forms to the outbox had approached the table, "It's not so bad, once you can get everything done in time, it sort of becomes a regular thing, and then it's not so hard."

Otome stepped over to the table. She slid a single hand along its surface before scooping up a stray pen and began tapping it on the polished wood between two fingers.

"Katsura-san has been getting rather bold lately, don't you think?" her eyes on the pen.

The girls continued what they were doing, but the two at the table cast side glances at her.

"What gave her the idea she could treat us this way?"

The girl in the corner desk pushed her chair back and hung an arm over the back rest, "I don't think she's so bad."

Otome's eyes leered up at her, the pen stopped tapping.

"She's actually pretty nice, and really forgiving," said the one across the desk from Otome.

She caught Otome's menacing glance and quickly looked back down at her business.

Otome fanned her sight over all of them, "I think she's forgotten her place."

Pens and pencils stopped scribbling, now she had their attention, but there was no answer to this.

"I think she's gotten a little too power hungry."

The more bold one seated in the corner responded, "I don't think so. She hasn't been overly demanding. She finishes all of her work and only expects the same from us."

"But all you ever do while we're here is work."

"Otome…" the shy one in front of her mustered the courage to speak again, "Honestly, we only keep working because you and her are always fighting. We don't really want to cause any trouble, but we have nothing else to do…"

"Yeah, for a while there, things were pretty smooth, and then you got this chip on your shoulder. So now I just put my headphones on and tune you both out," said corner girl.

"Yeah, I mean, we can hang out, but that's not the only reason we're here. Work has to get done," said outbox girl.

"I think she has you all fooled…"

"Something tells me you're only fooling yourself," said corner girl.

Otome planted both hands on the table, "Oh yeah! Well what if I told all of you I have information that Eiichi has been cheating on her?"

A hush fell over the room. Her posse stared at her with wide eyed disbelief.

Then, snickers and snorts burst out, as each fell into bouts of hilarity.

Otome snarled, "I'm-I'm not kidding!"

"Oh wow Otome! I think when this year is over, you need a good long break!" corner girl tried to speak through her cackling.

"Yeah! Yeah!" shy girl giggled.

"Do you realize just how crazy what you just said sounded!?" outbox girl hunched over the table, one arm around her stomach.

"I'm serious!"

"No you're not! Eiichi is such a serious guy, he'd probably kowtow on a bed of hot coals for her forgiveness if that ever happened!"

The reeling laughter increased, only to feed her frustrations.

"You don't know him that well!" Otome shouted.

Corner girl heaved out a few more laughs, "I think the question should be, how would you know him that well?"

The laughing casually died down.

Outbox girl spoke up, a little bubbly from all of it, "Yeah Otome, it's been so obvious that you've had such a mad crush on him since last year. You really do need a break, and cold showers…a lot of them."

"Can't blame you though," corner girl leaned into her hand, "Every time I've seen them, they've been together, like they're joined at the hip."

"Yeah! All they ever do is hang out, it's so adorable…" the shy one at the table swooned.

"Watch out Kumi, you're jealousy is showing," outbox girl picked.

"I'm not jealous! I'm just…okay, maybe I am a little," Kumi smiled.

"So jealous, she's forgotten all about her boyfriend now…" corner girl grinned.

"Shut up you two!" Kumi turned in her seat.

"If Eiichi cheated on Kotonoha, where's your proof?" corner girl turned back to Otome.

"I-I saw him, with a member of my basketball team."

"Oh no, look out girls, Otome is seeing things now," outbox girl mocked.

"Well _duh_ , he's kind of been seen with a lot of girls lately. Don't know what that was all about, but I kind of wanted to join in," said corner girl.

"Have you forgotten about what he did to our plans last year?" grasping for anything that would get them to her side.

"Yeah, because of that, he won't talk to any of us now, thank you very much," corner girl gripped.

"You're the one who decided we should go through with it, even after all the hype when he saved Katsura. Who would've known he'd be the one to bust us, and wind up only giving us a slap on the wrist," said outbox girl.

"I wanted a little more than just a slap on the wrist. What a man…" corner girl gazed.

"I feel pretty bad about the whole thing now. God, that would've sucked if it wound up being me on that tape for all to see," said outbox girl.

Corner girl retorted, "Wouldn't have been much to see."

"Hey!"

"I've thought about apologizing to him for it…" Kumi muttered. "Maybe he'll forgive us and we can all be friends."

"Face it Kumi, you just want him in your pants like the rest of us," the laughter picked up again.

"Even after what happened to Makoto…" Otome stared.

Another deathly silence fell over the group, joined with a gasp from Kumi, who was the most ashamed. All four of them had been guilty for certain fraternizations, however, none knew if Otome had been aware.

"You didn't need to say that," corner girl grimaced.

"Yeah Otome…" Kumi was nearly in tears now.

"We all know Eiichi and Makoto didn't get along, but why are you bringing that up? I wonder if you forgot this Otome, but Eiichi nearly died. He was out of school until right before winter break. Thankfully Katsura-san told us as much of the story as she could."

"So that's how it is…" Otome scanned over them, "You're all siding with her."

Corner girl stood up from her seat and walked over to Otome, motioning her to follow. They didn't go far, only to a furthermost corner of the meeting room to speak semi-privately. She leaned close enough to Otome to whisper.

"I don't know why you don't like Katsura-san so much. Lately she's proved herself to not be as bad as you made her out to be. What is it that you want to do?"

"I want to expose her."

"Why? What is there to expose? If anyone would know something, it would be Natsumi and she only knows what everyone else does."

Otome leaned back and looked about, trying to figure her connotations.

"I know we gave her a pretty hard time before. I thought it was all in good fun, but after everything she went through, I realize where we went wrong. She tried to kill herself…and _she_ …" she looked back to make sure the other two weren't listening, "…she killed Sekai, Otome…"

"How would you know that?"

"Eiichi gets stabbed, Sekai gets dead, Kotonoha comes out of it unscathed, but doesn't want to talk about it, and now they hang around together like they're always watching each other's backs, you do the math. I don't know exactly what happened that night, but she and Eiichi haven't been the same since, and I for one, am not having anything to do with whatever it is you're planning. You're on your own…" her serious face had grown to a wide eyed expression of overt caution.

The others in the room had already begun packing up to leave. Corner girl left to join them, with Otome following behind.

"So that's it! I'm so happy to see you've all become such good friends with her! You're just going to walk out on me!?" Otome started up. "What happened to what we had last year!?"

"Give it a rest Otome," said outbox girl, heading for the door.

"We'll see you tomorrow. Please get some rest, you look tired," said Kumi.

They had all sided with her. Thanks to Kotonoha's popularity and this new way about her, Otome was being cast out. Survival of the fittest, and Kotonoha had proved herself to be the superior.

Her fist smacked on the table top.

"Fine! Cowards!" her head whipped toward the door to find she was alone.

She would just have to prove them wrong as well.

* * *

Otome stepped out to the school courtyard, still fuming and needing some air after all the noise created in the meeting room. Everyone had deserted her with forms to fill out before tomorrow, but she was too preoccupied to deal with that right now.

Things had changed and she hadn't even realized it. All the people she thought were once her friends had turned on her, now siding with the one person she never thought they would. They were all in their happy little group, minus her. She had allowed herself to become too distracted with a lie that she lost touch with her own life. The thought of it made her so angry, she couldn't stand it.

Gritting her teeth, she stepped out into the empty courtyard and found a bench to sit on.

She tried to relax, but she couldn't stop clenching her fists when she remembered how they just got done laughing at her, tearing down her words like they meant nothing.

She released a harsh groan, shaking her head.

A door opened up further from where she had entered and someone stepped out. This meant she had to remain quiet now if she didn't want to attract any unwanted attention.

She looked to her side and could see a rather tall, male student stepping out into the courtyard, his brown hair slicked back, exposing a broad forehead on top of a longish face. He had his hands in his pockets, but when he stepped further out, he removed one to rub the back of his neck while craning it at the sakura trees, letting out a tired sigh.

Otome set herself back into her conniving.

The boy walked over to a bench one space from hers and planted himself there.

Great, thanks to him she couldn't think in peace now. Nothing was going her way, and she started contemplating going back to the meeting room where no one could bother her.

Why was he so familiar to her? She'd seen him around campus. Really, how could someone that tall go unnoticed?

She turned her head to get a better look, but he noticed and turned his head as well. In her prompt reply, she looked forward.

Super, now he probably thought she was checking him out. Just one more problem to add to her list, but she had definitely seen him before.

"Hey, didn't you use to hang out with Makoto?" turning her head back to him.

"Um, me?" he sat up.

"Yeah you, we're kind of alone right now," he was big, but he wasn't exactly bright.

Her lashing out had impacted him and he drew back, "Yeah…"

"I always saw you two hanging out with Sekai."

"Yeah, we did…" he wasn't looking at her now, but at the bench.

She turned to the grass at her feet, "I knew him too. He was a friend of mine from Junior High…"

"So you've known him a while…I bet you really miss him…"

"Yeah…"

"I'm Sawanaga Taisuke," he stood up to walk over.

"Katou Otome," she scooted over, hoping he wouldn't sit too close.

Taisuke flopped down in the bench, hooking his arm over the back, "Man, I remember when we us to just hang out and talk about girls," is that all they ever did?

"You were close?"

Taisuke looked at her a moment, "I guess…we started hanging out less and less. After a while, I didn't even see him that much because he was always fooling around."

"Is that so…"

It could have been something tongue n' cheek, what Taisuke was saying. She had only wanted Makoto to become devoted to her, even though they had slept together while he was with Sekai. It didn't cross her mind then that he would be capable of such behavior. She thought everyone had simply been good friends with him. Before, she thought Sekai murdering him had been only the cause of obsessive lunacy, but hearing this now made her realize it should have been a tip off.

"Yeah, things got pretty wild for him there, I'm still jealous. He really had this mysterious way with the ladies."

"So what've you been doing?"

"I don't know…I just kind of walk around. I talk with friends. Kuroda misses him a lot and keeps calling me, wanting to talk. I guess I just don't know what to do anymore now that he's not around."

She didn't even know who this Kuroda was and he talked about her like she did. She already had him pegged as kind of a dolt, "That sucks…I feel the same way."

"How are you dealing?"

She sighed, "I just am, only things haven't been as smooth for me." She would tell him how she knew Makoto as a friend, but the rest was none of his business, "Makoto and I were close…"

"Did you like him too?"

"You really are a moron, aren't you…"

"Sorry, I just thought I'd ask. Everything just got so confusing after a while. First I can't tell if Makoto is going out with Saionji or Katsura, then everyone I run into can't stop talking about him and Saionji, and suddenly Makoto becomes chopped liver because everyone started going after…" his fists clenched as his head tipped down, menacing at the grass, "…that fuckin' Kuzoka…" he wouldn't say his first name.

"So you don't like Eiichi?"

"Yeah! I don't know why everyone started liking him so much. He threatened to kill me you know! He said he'd follow me home if I ever got close to Katsura again."

Otome, of course, had her fondness for Eiichi, even after what she had seen, and she knew of the fight between him and Makoto, but Eiichi threatening someone out of jealousy was never something she thought him capable of.

"Tough talk for him, I bet I could take him, but that guy's a fucking psycho. He jumped Makoto too. I was jealous of Makoto, but he deserved that fame more than Kuzoka. He probably threw Katsura out that window so he could get the glory for himself," did he even watch the videos? "If there's anyone who doesn't deserve her, it's him."

At his vehement reply, she decided to keep her affections to herself.

"So you like Katsura-san too, isn't that sweet. Well you're going to have to get in line, everyone seems to like her now…"

"She's so hard to get to now and the guys are even crazier about her."

"I don't really get it. Working with her has been so difficult. Are you sure you want someone like her? She can be really pushy."

"I-well, I guess…"

She scowled at him, "That's not very manly. If it were possible that you and her ever did get together, she'd walk all over you if you're going to be like that. Compared to how she was last year, it's like she's a different person."

"I can't do it again!" Taisuke nearly burst out into frantics.

"What are you blabbering about?"

"She's dating Kuzoka, and we sorta' had a run-in before that…I told her that I loved her," he chuckled, "and Kuzoka didn't know a thing. I had her in my arms," he hugged himself, "but she pushed me off and screamed at me."

"Yeah, nice goin' there, chump, maybe you hesitated. Maybe you should show her what a man can really do, but too late for you now, she's already taken."

"I want to," he slumped, "but she's dating Kuzoka now. If I try it and something goes wrong, no one will want to be seen with me."

"Yeah, you're in a pickle there," not really caring either way.

"If I could find a way to ruin him, I would do it so fast. Who knows what she's going through with him."

Otome stopped and side glanced at Taisuke. That had to be the only intriguing thing he'd said during their entire conversation. She had to think about this first. Aside from the girls, she didn't really know anyone who might be on board. After they rejected her plans, she was convinced she was pretty much alone. If she was going to get help, she'd have to sell it to someone else, whereas this guy was pretty fired up already. He was pretty stupid, but he was all she had.

"What if I told you I had a way?"

"What?" Taisuke turned from his brooding.

"A way for you to get back at Eiichi, something that would destroy him. I don't know that it would fix things between you and Katsura, but there's a chance it might land her in your arms again. You might have another opportunity there."

Taisuke looked like he was actually thinking for once, "No…no, what you're talking about doing is crazy."

"You said it yourself, you wanted to get back at him."

"I don't even know if I could do it again, she probably hates me now. Whenever I see them together, sometimes they stare at me. It gives me the creeps…"

Otome stood up, "Aren't you a man? It's not that hard! You looked up to Makoto, see what he was capable of? You just need to do it. Girls want that, even if they act like they don't. Sometimes when they tell you 'no', they really mean 'yes'."

"Well, why does it bother you so much that they're together?"

"I just…" she hadn't been expecting that one, "I just think they've gotten a little too comfortable with their notoriety. I work with Katsura in student council, and because she's with Eiichi, suddenly she thinks she can run things her way without anyone else's consent. It's really been pissing me off."

"What does their notoriety have to do with anything?"

He was picking an awfully bad time to start asking questions.

"Were you there for Sekai and Makoto's memorial service?"

"Yes, of course."

"Good, so was I. Guess who wasn't…"

Taisuke took a moment, "Them…"

"What does that say about them? What does that say about their integrity? Katsura was once friends with Sekai, she could have at least appeared at the service. They must have thought it was below them."

Taisuke lowered his gaze, doing what little pondering was possible for him, "What did you have in mind?"

"I just think we should bring them down a few notches, to remind them they're not untouchable. I have some ideas that you could maybe help me hash out. Maybe, if we can ruin their reputations, both of us might still have a chance at what we want. And even if it doesn't work out, it doesn't matter, I can't stand to see her walking around like she owns the place."

She sat back down, "Here's what I need you to do…"

 **AN:** Guys, this one turned out a lot longer than I planned, so I hope everything is up to par. And in case you guys are wondering, I did do my homework (a little) and: corner girl = Minami Obuchi, outbox girl = Natsumi Koizumi, and shy girl = Kumi Mori

My talented brother drew a close up image of Eiichi, apparently having a bad day. It's rough and I'm still working with him on it, I want to raise the jawline a little to narrow it out, give him more narrow, sharper eyes (I think the ones on the pic look a little sunken), and mess with the hair a little, but that's pretty much Eiichi. This image isn't going to stay up because I'm having him draw an image of Eiichi and Kotonoha to replace it. I think I've found my comic artist. He hasn't drawn manga for a long time and I didn't think he'd be up for it, but I guess my excitement over this story is getting him back into it.

1 "I Believe" by Stephen Bennet

2 "99 Ways to Die"; "Skin O' My Teeth" by Megadeth - Man, two decades later and these guys still kick ass.

3 "Koto" by Hunter Van Larkins - =D


	10. Chapter 10 Personal Space

**Chapter 10: Personal Space**

Isn't it a date? (~de geso)

The Ohara Sweets Shop and Cafe across the street from Sakakino was a lively retreat of relaxation for students to frequent on their Saturdays after school before beginning their weekend. Students on their work shifts busted tables, prepared drinks and managed transactions at the registers. Here and there, the occasional conversation would pick up between a waitress and friends from school.

The cafe itself was colorful in its own odd nature, peppy ads in bright greens and pinks were posted over backdrops of subtle, yet fitting brown shades. Upon entering through the main door, one would be greeted by a large line of students at the order counters, the various smells of ground and roasted coffee beans, and a rather energetic girl in a maid outfit to greet them. However, stepping to the right would bring one to a large seating area of patrons.

Roughly in the center of the room sat a straight, long booth that stretched nearly the whole length of the room, with light, predictably coffee brown cushioning for seating on both sides. On both sides as well, square tables were planted into the floor with exact spacing to seat two people so they could face the booth, four tables for each side. More students sat within this booth and joining seats, but near an empty table stood Kotonoha and Eiichi, while they pondered at it and discussed amongst themselves.

"So which do you think it should be? Girls on this side, guys on this side? Or should we go guy-girl, guy-girl?" Eiichi skipped his finger between the empty spaces.

"Well, it's their first time meeting here. I think we should have them facing each other, so girls-guys," Kotonoha gestured with a vertical hand.

"Okay, but I was thinking it might be better for them to be seated next to each other, so to initiate that contact."

"Mm-mm," she shook her head, "they need to be facing so they can talk and be able to see each other. If they're just sitting next to each other, it will be uncomfortable."

He pulled up one of the chairs, "There you go again, schooling me on how to be a good host."

She slid into the booth across from him, "It's just being practical."

"Here are your drinks," a young waitress with brown hair tied in loops approached the table and began setting them down while Kotonoha and Eiichi arranged them, "This one is your black coffee, this is the coffee with extra creamer and whip, and two springtime special lattes."

Her voice was cheery enough, but to make things a little dank, Eiichi could tell she recognized them, and the connections that made in her head were not in an uplifting pattern.

She tucked the tray under her arms, still with that patronizing smile, "Can I interest you in any of our delicious pastries or cakes?"

"Thank you, but that will be all," Kotonoha said.

The waitress bowed and left them to their conversation.

Eiichi hooked his arm over the back of his chair, and had been looking long after she left, "Do you recognize her?"

"She goes to our school. I don't believe I remember her all that well."

Eiichi continued to stare.

"What's wrong?" Koto leaned forward.

"It's sad," he returned to her, taking the cover all the way off of his cup, "it just seems no matter where I go, there's always someone that's been involved…"

"It's hard not to. I don't think that will go away until you graduate."

"One more reason for me to be happy I am…"

While he blew on his drink, she watched him with a concerned smile.

"So, is that what she ordered?" Kotonoha asked, looking at the other springtime latte.

"Yeah, she let me know through her text. I was a bit surprised, I kind of took her for more of the robust type, being a basketball player."

"Girls have their vices too. The season is over now, so it makes sense for her to want to splurge."

1"Yes, I can see that," he eyed the similar drink and then flitted up to her.

"Hey, we don't do this enough, and the year is almost over, so it's fine if I have one too," her complacent defense.

"Oh it's fine," he grinned, "I just haven't had much of a chance to pick at you lately."

She smiled with a subtle shake of the head, "You're always analyzing, give yourself a break."

"Hard not to, but I guess I could try."

"And she wanted to come here?"

"She told me about it, so I thought it would be the best place for them to meet."

"That's very thoughtful of you, but I'm not so sure about not letting either know there's going to be company. I felt rather guilty sending that text message."

"Oh, it should be fine. They can't blame us for trying, right?"

"Okay…"

Kotonoha looked around and found a small table placed in the room with extra drink covers, straws and condiments on it. She stood, paced over to it and grabbed an extra straw.

When she made it back to the booth, she placed the straw into her drink on Eiichi's side and pushed it closer to him.

"Give it a try."

Eiichi lifted his head and calmly looked about the room.

"You can't be getting self-conscious now," she said.

"That's not it, it's just when they get here, they're going to have a laugh riot at this cliche."

"Let them. I think you'll like it, it's mint and white chocolate."

He grumbled mildly before leaning forward and placing his lips on the straw. Smirking, she joined him.

After a while, he smirked back and lifted his head, "It's good, but I know what you're doing."

"Mhm~, don't you think it's a good priming measure?"

He smiled, "I do. You're quite the sly psych."

She smiled back, and as if by perfect timing—

"Well, look at the lovely couple!"

Kotonoha and Eiichi's heads turned to see none other than Chie standing and grinning from the end of the booth, along with a few other students looking in the same direction at her outburst.

Clad in her school uniform like everyone else, her hair was still tied back in a ponytail as if she had just left basketball practice.

She approached the booth, gym bag slung over one shoulder, "Sharing a drink in such a populated place, you two really are getting cozy," and as they had planned, Eiichi could taste the notable undertones of envy in her output.

Seeing that her drink had been placed next to Kotonoha, Chie respectfully took her assigned seat.

"Did you just get back from practice?" Eiichi asked.

"Just cleaning out my locker," she patted the bag, "All that's left is ending ceremonies now." She turned to Kotonoha, "Katsura-san, it's great to finally get to meet you, Eiichi has told me so much," the bubbly Chie smiled politely with a gentle nod.

"And you as well Ashikaga-san, the pleasure is all mine," Koto returned. "Eiichi told me all about you and the time he's been spending with you and your brother. He and I have actually been friends for most of this year."

Eiichi picked up that Chie, unwary of Kotonoha's updated knowledge, and other certain events, wanted to avoid that particular topic.

"Oh that's so kind of Yuuki to not mention me," her smirk remained with stoic sarcasm.

"I am sorry, but no, he never did mention that he had a sister. We only spoke periodically while he was working."

"Oh no, no need to apologize on his behalf Katsura-san," Chie waved a hand, "That's just how he is. He's always been forgetful. I guess I'm just there as a pleasant reminder to him," she took a sip from her drink. "It's nice to have some backup now. With this many people working together, we shouldn't have too much trouble. Since you're friends with Yuuki, and Eiichi seems to have his fingers in every pie now," with a casual disapproving look, "we should be able to come up with something very interesting."

"Hey, it's not my fault he had all his attention on me for a while there," Eiichi droned.

"It seems that Eiichi and Yuuki have come to an understanding now," Kotonoha chimed in, "There shouldn't be anymore conflict between the two of them."

"That's good at least, I was curious about what all the noise between you two was about," not certain whether to bring up some of the info Eiichi had relayed previously. "So before we get started, I want to ask, who else will be joining us?" Chie's eyes had cast over the fourth drink in front of her.

"Another person I talked to about what's going on," Eiichi figured he'd take the hit for this.

"You do understand the rules behind something like this, right?" Chie gave him a mildly skeptical look. "You don't exactly go around telling everyone and their second cousin that you're bringing two friends together."

Eiichi hunched down in his seat a little, sipping his coffee at an angle.

"He's very well versed in matters like this," Kotonoha inserted, "He's actually been doing it for a long time and I'm rather surprised he hasn't thought about starting a business."

Chie remained skeptical, resting her chin on curled fingers, "Oh, an older guy is he? Would he have anything to do with you two being so successful?"

"Oh, um, m-maybe. I can't really speak for him…" Kotonoha stammered before placing her hands in her lap.

Eiichi hunched lower, sipping his coffee, when their lifesaver approached the table.

"Hey everyone, sorry it took me so long, I had more shopping to do," Torio appeared and hung a light hooded sweater on the back of the chair in front of Chie, "Have to get that stuff done earlier in the day while the place is still restocked."

With it being a Saturday, his casual business attire no longer fit his tallish frame. Instead, jeans, a t-shirt and open front collared shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows were his choice on this spring afternoon.

Eiichi stood immediately, "Hey Torio. Uh, Chie, this is my older brother Torio."

Like on a heart monitor, both Torio and Chie's outputs spiked from the unwitting introduction, as they both laid eyes on each other. Mutual sudden attraction raised, even for Torio, who had never seen any aforementioned images of Chie.

Though Torio now knew his entire reasoning for being called to this particular place at such an uncanny time, his output made no effort to hide it from him manipulating little brother, and merely smoothed itself out, taking in the engagement with poise.

"Ashikaga Chie, am I correct? It's nice to meet you," tipping his head.

Chie nearly stumbled to get out of the booth, "U-um, yes! Me as well. _I mean_ _you_ , to meet you I mean," and now she was beating herself up, which left Eiichi suffering under the blowback.

"Of course," Torio looked to Eiichi and Kotonoha, "Thank you two for ordering. Excuse me a moment," Torio stepped over to the supply table.

Chie took her seat and began staring blankly at Eiichi, who squirmed in his place, hand to the side of his head while pretending to have found something very interesting with his coffee.

After returning, Torio took his seat and began stirring the whipped cream into his drink.

He took a sip, "So I understand this has to do with two of your friends, right? Ashikaga-san, one is your younger brother?"

"Please, call me Chie…" realizing what she just said with more self-deprecation, making Eiichi curl up again. She tried to cover, "A-And his name is Yuuki. I don't want there to be any confusion."

"Sure, and the other is a kouhai of yours?"

"Kitsuregawa Roka," like she was answering game show questions.

"Eiichi has given me all the details up to now. It seems they're having some difficulty. This was your idea to put them together?"

"Uh, yes…actually the connection was unavoidable. They had already met, though not in the most ideal fashion…" once they got to talking, Eiichi noticed Chie's output gradually began to smooth out as well, though it felt odd to her, speaking so openly about such a subject. She had rested her chin in her hand as before.

Torio smiled, "Yeah, he told me about that as well."

Chie smiled back, "They can both be rather clumsy, which only gave me more incentive to give it a try."

"That's incentive enough, if you ask me. They've both seen the package without the wrapping, so why not give it a go?"

"That's what I said!" and then Chie stopped. "You know, it's interesting. When Eiichi messaged me, he only mentioned Katsura-san would be joining us."

Mimicking her, Torio moved an inquisitive hand to his chin, "Me as well. I thought it was interesting that Kotonoha suggested we meet here, especially while school was just getting out. She said it was because she and Eiichi were running into trouble with this, but she never mentioned we would have company…"

"Eiichi…"

The two heads rotated in Eiichi's direction.

"W-wait, why are you two staring at me like that?"

Chie looked to Torio and smiled, her voice turning back to its bubbly tone, "Excuse me a moment."

"By all means."

She got up and stepped quickly over to Eiichi's end, tucking a hand under his arm. Eiichi looked up in his distress.

"Katsura-san, may I borrow him for a few minutes?" her bright, pseudo smirk still visible.

"Of course!" Kotonoha tipped her head and returned the smile.

Suddenly Eiichi felt a crushing pressure on his inner arm as Chie tugged him out of his seat.

" _Hey-hey-hey_!" Eiichi's feet clamored to regain their footing.

Looking back at his lost place of refuge, he could see Koto, still with her pleasant smile, a single hand bye-bye brushing through the air at him, ' _I'll bring flowers to your funeral my love._ '

"Ow! _Ow_! Dammit!"

Other students watched, amused, as the Basketball Star continued to pull the clamoring and griping Hero of Sakakino all the way around the booth and to a turn that led to the bathrooms and employee break room.

"Ah! Jeez!"

They disappeared behind the corner and Chie released him.

Eiichi massaged his bicep, "Has anyone told you, you have a crazy firm grip?"

" _Basketball. Judo._ " Chie spouted, hands on her hips, no longer false, bubbly Chie. She pointed, "Who is that guy Eiichi-why are you and Katsura trying to get us to talk-why does he know so much about me-why is he looking at me funny-and why is he sitting across from me?"

Eiichi removed his hand, hoping she didn't pull something, "Well, to answer two of those, he's my brother, remember? And we didn't have to try so much with getting you to talk."

"I know what you're doing, and I have to say, talk about amateur hour."

"Well hey, we got you guys here, didn't we?" this was damage control, Eiichi knew there was no talking himself out of this one.

"I can understand you telling Katsura-san about what we're doing here, and I'm all good with having her on board, but what're you doing setting me up like this? I looked like a total ditz back there!" trying to keep her voice down.

"Well I can tell you he already doesn't think that."

" _Why_ , what more did you tell him!?" she edged forward, more excited than angry.

"Nothin', nothin', just chill," he raised his hands. "Sheesh, why is it people who'd rather mess with other's love lives don't like being messed with themselves?"

"Match making with a partner doesn't mean you set up your partner. He probably thinks I'm too easy now because you didn't _warn me ahead of time_."

"He pretty much knows as much about you as you know about him. Listen, we invited him to join us because he does know a lot about this stuff and he could be a big help."

"He looks like he knows way more than I have to offer. We're setting up my brother and a friend of mine, not starting a dating service. Talk about overkill, this is probably just petty high school junk to him. What is he, _thirty_?"

Eiichi looked at her blankly, "He's twenty-three and you're overcompensating. It would also explain why you keep messing with your hair that way…"

Chie's hand darted from her bangs. She had already undone her ponytail, loosing her brownish red locks.

"And why you keep casting glances at him when you think he's not looking…"

"I didn't have time to touch up, since you called me over right after school, moron!"

"You heard him, he just got back from shopping. He doesn't normally look that way, usually it's all coat n' collar with him."

Chie's inner workings mused at this, conjuring an image of his brother that made Eiichi want to pour dish cleaner into his eyes. Could've done without that, suddenly shock therapy didn't sound so bad.

Eiichi continued, "I know I'm treading where I shouldn't—"

"I think we've already established that."

"—but, looks are not a major concern with him. We're just here to hash things out, that's all. I can guarantee, Koto and I aren't going to be slipping you guys notes or making any suggestions."

"Right…" and then Chie stopped a moment. "Eiichi, I thought I would mention, Yuuki has been pretty down lately. Would you know anything about that?"

Eiichi had been wondering when this would come up, "Yeah, I would…I got him to confess to Kotonoha."

Chie's eyes popped open, "That's…interesting. First, why? And second, how?"

"Well you guessed right, he does have an infatuation with her. That day he tried to fight me, I got him to talk it out. And it was then that I decided to help him with it."

"By having him confess to your girl?" she nodded out the words, dumbfounded.

"Yes. I figured it was the best way. It was…the healthiest way. He needed help, so I gave him the best opportunity I could. I know it's not going to happen overnight, but I hope that as he's coming down from it, we can get Roka in front of him, get them more acquainted, and then he should start to brighten up."

"Eiichi, that is…" Chie gaped as she shook her head and stared at the ceiling. Then she cast her gaze on the obscure, raucous looking young man standing in the passageway before her, "You are something else…there is…something wild about you. Most guys couldn't stand the thought of doing something like that…"

He gave a little fanged half-smile, "I can't guarantee it will work completely, but at least he's in the healing process now."

"I thought you were a chill guy before, but wow…I gotta' say, I'm impressed. Kotonoha is one lucky girl. I can only dream of finding a guy that's that trusting."

"A-Are you sure, cause he's sitting right out there…" Eiichi pointed behind himself.

" _No._ _Don't_. You're ruining it!" Chie wagged a finger.

"You might even learn a few things. Think of him as a senpai."

" _Eiichi_ …" she growled. He seemed to really have a knack for pissing off the Ashikaga family.

"Trust me, with him around, things are going to go a lot smoother."

"I guess you can only be speaking from experience."

" _Gee_ , how long have we been talking here?" checking his invisible wrist watch. "They're probably wondering where we went off to," Eiichi turned abruptly and began walking back with Chie's fiery eyes on him the entire way.

At the table, Chie consciously rounded Torio to get back to her place.

' _Back from the dead?_ ' Koto was looking at him. ' _Would it be time to move to the second part of the plan?_ '

Eiichi watched to see if Chie was looking and then made a swiping motion across his throat before taking his seat. Kotonoha responded by sipping at her drink while crumpling a napkin and concealing it in the pocket of her skirt to throw away later.

"Alright grifters," Eiichi started up, "meeting is now in session."

"Oh no," Chie intercepted, "you're not calling it that."

"It's just a name. Come on, we're kinda' like _Ocean's Eleven_."

"Eiichi, grifter sounds a little strong, even as a joke," Koto added meagerly.

"We're not bamboozling them…not really…" Chie said.

Torio sat by silently.

"Okay, fine. Why are girls always concerned with the naming of things…"

"You'll learn one day little brother," Torio patted his shoulder.

Chie stood, "Since it was my idea, and since we're all here for the same reasons, more or less, we're going to call it whatever I say we should call it."

"And that would be…" Eiichi asked.

"…It's still pending, since we're being so short notice with everything now," a flashing glance at Eiichi, "However, I would suggest we get everyone's inputs and experiences up to this point. Katsura-san, Kuzoka-san—"

"Please, call me Torio," he smoothed, "Since you already know my brother."

"Yes Chie, and you can call me Kotonoha as well," Koto smiled.

"Oh-um, okay…" For a brief moment, Chie's voice became soft and high while she tried to hide her smile, fixated on Torio, not hearing a word from her neighbor.

' _No, that's okay, I'm just sitting here…_ ' Koto's output sulked.

Eiichi tapped a finger on the table at her, causing Koto to look at him. With a light smile, his eyes moved to Chie and then back to her, causing her to relax and reply with a curve of her lips.

He mouthed to her, " _Mission accomplished_ …"

Chie recovered and then it was back to business, "Ahem, it will probably just be me and Eiichi talking for a while. I'm sorry if any of this seems new to the both of you, since he has a knack for keeping people in the dark. Anyways, after that, we can start with the brainstorming. So, what have we got?"

* * *

That Monday, as planned, Kotonoha, Eiichi and Yuuki all met on the rooftop for lunch. Kotonoha had been concerned about Yuuki's output being on the fritz and had a pre-luncheon talk with Eiichi. Though she had been intent on him remaining present for the gathering, she allowed him as many 'bathroom trips' as he needed if things were getting too intense.

Eiichi had wondered if insisting Yuuki have lunch with them, forcing him to be around her, had been the best idea for Yuuki's wellbeing. Kotonoha simply stated that Eiichi had spent enough time with him and that it was her turn to do the same. Her hopes had been that Yuuki becoming more familiar with her would help to ease things over time. He was their friend now, she said it was time for them to be the kind, hospitable friends she knew they were.

They sat along the bench, side by side, Yuuki sitting far enough away so he could face his attentive couple. Kotonoha sat between him and Eiichi, the two rotated enough to make equal exchange with him. Though conversation had been the key, most hopeful function of the meeting, there wasn't much.

Yuuki, in his melancholy daze of latent accomplishment and jarring defeat, with the added chilled wariness of the object of his affections sitting just inches from him, only spoke to greet them and to kindly accept the offering of food from the basket of bentos Kotonoha had lovingly prepared.

In the process of making their lunch the night before, Eiichi had stood by, offering suggestions to make the lunch extra special. He even went to the extent of texting Yuuki and asking him what he liked to eat, but Yuuki's courteous response had been for them to prepare whatever they wanted. When Yuuki got depressed, he really got depressed, not on a Kotonoha level, but pretty close.

Three little birds skipped about on the pad in front of Yuuki. They chirped amongst themselves while he gazed at them distantly.

Eiichi leaned forward a little to talk to Yuuki, his hand on the backrest behind Kotonoha, "So has Chie said anything to you recently?"

At first, Yuuki didn't look like he would respond, and then he muttered, "About what…"

"Anything to do with apologizing to Roka?"

Yuuki was silent.

"I know Roka seems to jump the gun sometimes, but like I told you before, she talked with me. She's very sorry about what happened, but she doesn't know how to make it up to you."

Yuuki shifted the sandwich in his hand, with only two bites in it, "I don't wanna' talk to her right now…"

Eiichi had already finished eating and taken out his ecig. Through his headache, he carefully considered what he was about to say, "She really wants to be friends with you, and is pretty broken up about it."

"If that's true, she has a funny way of showing it…"

Kotonoha set her sandwich down to chime in, "Yuuki, Eiichi introduced Roka to me a few days ago and I thought she was wonderful, but she did seem very sad."

Eiichi picked up that Yuuki didn't want to believe this, but because it was coming from Kotonoha, believing was his default reaction.

"Yuuki, what do you want to do?"

Yuuki sighed, not bothering to take another bite of his sandwich.

Kotonoha watched him, and then began picking a small handful of sesame seeds from the spread. She handed some to him. He looked at them a moment, not knowing what to do, and then Kotonoha tossed her collection out near the birds. They scurried and fluttered before returning to peck. Yuuki looked back at the seeds in his hand.

His mouth curved up in a half contented smile before he tossed the seeds. The three at their fill and then fluttered away.

Eiichi had been watching. He turned to Yuuki again, "Nah, you're gonna' apologize," and then pocketed his ecig, getting up from his spot.

Yuuki had a whole weekend to be depressed, it was time for him to start acting.

He moaned, "Can't we just stay up here…forever…"

Eiichi noticed Yuuki had been really taking in the safeness and solitude of the roof.

He picked up Yuuki's arm and grunted while tugging lightly, "C'mon…c'mon…upsy-daisy…"

"No, I don't wanna'…" Yuuki let his head hang back.

"You'll feel a lot better, Yuuki," Kotonoha said.

Yuuki allowed himself to be pulled up out of his place. He staggered and began shuffling toward the access door next to Eiichi.

"Don't worry, everything's gonna' be fine," Eiichi patted his back.

"Bring him back in one piece," Kotonoha called.

Eiichi began to wonder on the way down if they would even be able to find their quarry, the rare and elusive twin-tail tiger, in her natural habitat. He'd known Roka now for a week at least, and he still knew nothing about where to find her during lunch.

He took out his cell phone: 'Roka, I'm coming down to the first floor with someone. He's got something he wants to say to you.'

There was no response, and when they stepped out from the staircase, there was no Roka, not even near the cafeteria.

"Maybe she's talking with some friends and missed me. C'mon, let's look around."

Eiichi started, but had to back up and pull Yuuki along by the coat sleeve. Once they got going he was able to move on his own.

"Now, our feisty purple haired friend's got to be around here somewhere…"

They were headed toward a corner when she stepped out form the other side.

"Roka. Roka?"

Roka shut her eyes and continued past the two. Disappointment and anger painted her output. She did see Yuuki was with him, right?

Eiichi began to follow, but had to tow Yuuki again by the fabric of his shoulder.

Yuuki was suddenly feeling nervous and only wanting not to go through with things more. Today was an emotionally unstable party. All aboard the self-loathing express, but for Eiichi's case, it was, 'welcome to the pain train.'

He managed to catch up to her, "Alright, so what's eating you?"

"I'm not talking to you!" her face tensed and she picked up her pace, gripping her tote strap.

Eiichi sped up, hoping his dead weight wouldn't trip him up, "And why the hell not?"

She rounded a corner.

"You lied to me, you said you'd talk to Yuuki and instead, you got into a fight with him!" damn word spreads fast around here.

"No I didn't! Why does everyone think it was an actual fight!?" what was it with her and being on limited information?

"You told me to keep my cool, when you can't even keep your own!"

"Roka-Roka, stop! _L—ook Roka~_ , I have him right here."

This did make her stop, turning an about face and planting one foot down, grimacing at Eiichi.

"I didn't fight him. He tried to fight me, but I didn't touch him," without breaking eye contact, Eiichi pulled on Yuuki's shoulder until he was standing right next to him. "I told you I'd bring him to you."

Technically Eiichi had said he would 'straighten him out', and though Yuuki had no obvious physical damage, he looked pretty worse for wear.

Her eyes darted to Yuuki's sad, spectacled face, still staring at the floor. So endeared by his suffering, she resisted her strong urges to nurture him with a tight, nuzzling hug, and looked back at Eiichi.

"Yeah right! Ashikaga-san wouldn't do that!"

"Appearances Roka, if you don't believe me, just ask him yourself."

She looked back at Yuuki again, "I thought you two were having problems."

Eiichi wrapped a chummy arm around Yuuki's slumped shoulders, "Nah! We're good now! See? Tell her Yuuki!"

"He makes me do things…"

Surely Yuuki had meant to say more. A bright red line traveled up from the bottom of Roka's neck, over her gaping mouth and eyes, and to the ridge of her hairline, leaving a rouge plateau of carnal fantasy, and more personal images that made Eiichi remove his arm, refraining from touching Yuuki, likely for the rest of his natural life.

" _P-Pervert_!" Roka did another about face.

" _You could have finished that sentence,_ " Eiichi hissed.

"Can I go back to the roof now…"

Why didn't he think to bring Koto with him? They just left her up there all by her lonesome again, and if she had been here, he wouldn't be dealing with this junk right now. Truthfully, it was only supposed to take a few minutes, and Yuuki needed another good shove to get things going. It was likely bringing her with could have made Roka feel overwhelmed. However, it could have also been a showing of Koto's support. This is when he desperately considered texting her for backup — ' _Koto, I got a 288 and a 135 in progress by the lunch hall, I need another black n' white down here._ '

Eiichi left Yuuki parked and rushed after her, " _No-wait-wait_! Roka! Wait!"

"Stay away from me!"

"Please, hear him out!"

If Eiichi tried to stop her now, it would only make things worse. She'd probably scream at him and cause a scene.

Roka was picking up her pace again, almost at a run.

"Kitsuregawa!"

Both Roka and Eiichi turned. Yuuki had come out of his melancholy, just for a moment, just so he could call out to her. He returned to his slumped stance, but began pacing toward them. He stepped around Eiichi and approached Roka, his eyes still to the floor and only occasionally glancing up at her when he spoke.

"Eiichi didn't do anything wrong. There was no fight. It was an attempt on my part to defame him…"

Roka no longer tried to avoid them, and gawked at Yuuki, "Ashikaga-san, why would you try to do that?"

"Eiichi only tried to do what was right. I did it because…because I…"

"You two really shouldn't talk here," Eiichi checked his phone. "We were eating lunch on the roof earlier, I think that would be the best place for this."

Roka turned, "You guys eat lunch on the roof!?"

"Yeah, there's a butler n' everything. We may have a little less than fifteen minutes left, so if you guys hurry, you can make with the chit-chat."

Roka stayed herself, uncertain, "I don't know, I was going to—"

"Roka," Eiichi stopped her, "If this is important to you, whatever you were doing can wait."

"I-I guess…"

Roka and Yuuki walked ahead of Eiichi, with him tailing behind them. Getting them to the roof should help them to clear things, especially with Koto around.

Eiichi breathed a sigh of relief. That was a close one, ' _Nice save Yuuki. You really stepped up._ '

"Eiichi!" a voice called to him.

He turned to see Otome rushing up. Roka and Yuuki, none the wiser, had continued on without him.

She approached him and stood cordially, with her hands clasped together, playing with her fingers, "I've kind of been looking for you. I…I wanted to talk to you about some things," when she began speaking, her eyes stared straight back at his, only looking away to blink bashfully, "I don't know if you have time now, but I can wait until after school if you'll come. I've been doing a lot of thinking, and I think we kind of got off on the wrong foot. I haven't forgotten about what happened last year, and I really want to apologi—"

Eiichi didn't bother staying for the rest, he turned and kept walking.

She tried to follow, "Eiichi! Wait! Why're you—"

"Stay away from me," he turned and pointed, his narrowed eyes glaring back from behind the gesture.

Otome took a step back, looking frightened, "But—"

"No!" he lowered his arm and continued on his way.

While leaving her behind, he took his phone out: 'I'm returning with Yuuki. Roka will be joining us, but we have a problem. Otome is up to something. I'll explain when I get there.'

On his way back up, Eiichi made hurried steps and looked a few times to make sure Otome had not followed him. Upon making it, he pushed the access door open to find the three talking amongst themselves, Yuuki standing off to the side, being the least vocal. When they saw him come out, he motioned for Yuuki to step over and left Kotonoha to console Roka.

Yuuki shuffled over to him.

"So what's with the hesitation? We got her up here. Have you said anything yet?"

"I don't know, it feels strange doing it in front of Kotonoha…" Yuuki ran a hand through his hair.

"Well I don't mean to rush you, but unless you and her are okay with skipping class, you better say something now."

"What do I tell her?"

"Well, she pretty much knows, so you might as well tell her everything. Except that one thing, maybe leave that out. But ask yourself why you feel conflicted by telling her?"

"Why I'm conflicted?"

"You were afraid to apologize for a reason."

"Yeah, because she hates me."

"That's not what Koto said, remember? The things is—Ah, you'll understand in time. Go on, get over there," it was about time for Yuuki to start figuring things out on his own.

Eiichi walked Yuuki over to the girls. When they saw, Kotonoha touched Roka's shoulder and whispered something to her before walking toward the guys.

Eiichi backed away and began surveying the two, when as Kotonoha had been approaching him, she laid a hand on his shoulder, "Come on, leave this to them."

" _Oh_ , right," realizing how unwelcome his presence would be, he turned and joined her back to the roof access door.

They decided to stay at the top of the flight and have their own private discussion.

"So what's this about Otome?" Kotonoha asked.

Eiichi shut the door and stepped over to the space by the rail with her.

"I don't know what exactly is going on, but I ran into her in the hall and she was saying she wanted to apologize for the situation last year. Only I picked up that wasn't her true intention."

Kotonoha cradled a hand of curled fingers to her chin, "That's strange, why would she lie about that?"

"Beats the hell outta' me, but she was getting pretty vengeful, and…"

"What is it?"

"Well, you know how I told you before that she was attracted to me?"

Kotonoha nodded casually.

"Well, I was still getting that from her, but…it's hard to explain. Before, there were genuine emotions involved; affection, sadness, excitement, that whole list."

"Gee, could your head get any bigger?" Kotonoha said blandly.

Eiichi took a momentary sigh before continuing, "But this time…it was all gone. It's like I was just some thing to her. She wasn't even looking at me like a person. Everything I got from her was strictly superficial…"

Kotonoha kept silent, patiently observing her lover through keen, empathetic eyes in his dilemma.

Eiichi shook his head, "I don't know what to do from here…"

"Eiichi, I think you're just going to have to avoid her. We only have a few weeks left, so you can get through that. I'll keep an eye out and let you know if I notice anything. She's been getting rather irritable lately, so that might explain some things."

"I just…" he smoothed a hand down the side of his face, curving the fingers over his mouth, and positioned it to his chin to speak, "I wanted to help her, Koto…She was just coming around, and I thought if I could talk with her…The more I saw her, the more it just started to bother me…And now I think I'm too late…"

Kotonoha reached out and stroked his arm.

The roof access door burst open, thankfully with not enough force to hit Kotonoha, and Roka came running through, attacking the stairs at a quick pace.

"Roka!" Kotonoha called out to her.

Halfway down the flight, she stopped to look up at them. Eiichi had only a few seconds to pick up vapors of panic in her output when she passed by, but her face was stern. She continued down the stairs as quick as her legs could carry her without tripping.

Eiichi touched Kotonoha's shoulder, "Yuuki…"

They rushed out the door to find him sitting on both knees on the roof pad.

Once they got to him, Kotonoha leaned over his shoulder and placed a hand on it, while Eiichi knelt in front of him.

"What happened!?"

"Yuuki, are you alright?"

Yuuki didn't look at them, and merely gazed catatonic at the pad.

Eiichi stretched his hands forward and shook Yuuki by the arms, "Yuuki! Speak to me! What did she say!?" Yuuki's head just bobbed up and down in front of him, knocking his glasses off center.

"Yuuki, what's wrong?" Kotonoha pleaded.

It took Eiichi a minute to realize this, but he was not in any pain from Yuuki's output, even though Yuuki looked like he was in mental agony.

Yuuki blinked at the pad, "She…" he raised his head, looking at Eiichi distantly through his crooked specs, "She…She kissed me…"

1 "Shimiri" by Kikuya Tomoki (Hidamari Sketch OST)


	11. Chapter 11 Icarus

**Chapter 11: Icarus**

'Chie, you've gotta' get down here. Looks like things have sparked off ahead of schedule.'

1It was after school as evening rays were just beginning to set in through the clouds. As soon as classes had ended, Eiichi found Yuuki, where he figured would be the last place he left him, with no sight of Roka on his way to pick him up. Even after sending a couple, still unanswered messages, and one phone call where the only answer had been a message machine of what must've been a favorite anime theme of hers, Eiichi became concerned that Roka had dipped out for the day, too ashamed to face Yuuki. If she liked anime, maybe she and Yuuki had more in common than imagined.

After finding Yuuki, Eiichi walked him outside to the path leading off campus. He found a bench for him to sit on so he could pace calmly, trying to sort things out. Yuuki needed it more than him, his output had been causing Eiichi pain, but not to a crippling degree. It actually had him feeling more like he didn't know which way was up anymore.

Yuuki's depression had done an immediate flip over to complete confusion. With this reigning above all; as dysfunctional sub-folders there was also hope, fear, excitement, passion, compassion, clairvoyance, telekinesis, flying, Vulcan mind melds, breathing fire, teleporting…

Messages zig-zagged and mingled from behind Yuuki's vacant stare, positives mixing with negatives, memories, fantasies, things he thought he had forgotten, things he thought he remembered, making Eiichi even begin to wonder 'why is air?' 'where do birds go when they fly South?' 'do I have nanobots in my bloodstream?' Hence his need to remain on his toes and pacing at a distance.

At present, Yuuki didn't really move much. His hands hung limp between his legs while he stared at the path with no longer dim eyes, instead, rather alert ones that broadened occasionally with a silent intake of air through the mouth or nose, sometimes both, as his mind returned to the realization of what exactly happened a few hours ago, and then it was back to lively, confusing contemplation.

Trying to ignore his output, Eiichi wondered if Yuuki was even conscious of where he was, if he knew that there was someone right here to talk to, or if he even realized school was over. He half expected him to raise his hand, stand up and start listing the molecular compounds of glucose. It was apparent, in Yuuki's own terms, he was suffering a series of system errors.

Eiichi took a look around before he began talking, "I suppose I can be completely honest with you now…" seeing no one nearby that might cause a fuss, he reached into his coat pocket and produced his ecig, taking a long drag from it.

He kept his voice level and stern, "Yuuki, I'm a secret agent working for an undocumented organization that deals in the discovery and maintaining of rare blood types, because we believe they possess the cure for cancer. During our time together, I have managed to collect samples of your blood, and you made the cut…"

This had little effect, but he thought it was worth a try.

After exhaling more sweet vapors, he held his ecig up near his chest, with one hand in his pocket, continuing to pace in front of him, "Roka and I have been talking for a while, and…" he stopped and faced Yuuki with a bold shake of his head "…she's crazy about you man."

Talking to Yuuki now only created more whirs in the vapors of his output. The messages were getting through, but not without some complications.

Eiichi continued pacing, "While you were going around, working on tearing me down, I was talking with her, and she could not stop talking about you."

Truthfully, Eiichi had not brought up Roka often enough to Yuuki to get a good fix on what his true emotions were. Only the few times he did, he noticed a tension that was not all dislike, but Yuuki had his fixations, which did a bang up job of muddling things.

"I was pushing you to confess to Koto because this is what I had in store for you. Well I guess I should say _we_ ," though now it seemed all the available help was a little late, but he wasn't taking for granted the other three being available in times like this. There had been a kiss, but there was still help to be offered, "Your sister and I have been working to try and pull you two together. I know you and Roka were against the idea of becoming close, but Chie sold me on it."

Eiichi peered down at Yuuki's petrified astonishment. With lips parted and unresponsive, it didn't look like a single word was getting through.

"Over time, Roka began to develop feelings for you, and she started coming to me for advice. I wonder, if you were not so fixated on Koto, the same might have happened for you, and none of this would have been nearly as difficult, but I have to tell you, we weren't expecting things to get set off this early. I guess I waited too long, but you didn't make things any easier. But don't blame yourself," he gestured to the vegetated Yuuki, "I mean, how were you supposed to know?"

He turned to see Chie stepping out of the front doors and heading up the path to them.

"So what's with the red alert?" she approached.

"Seems we have ourselves a kiss n' run," Eiichi took another drag.

"Oh…" Chie looked rather surprised, and paced in front of Eiichi to survey her brother.

"Well, like I said before, Roka was the only one wanting to make advances."

"She just couldn't hold it in any longer I guess…"

"Yeah, she's crazy about him. _Man_ …" Eiichi stressed, "I leave those two alone for a few minutes, and this happens. I only wanted him to apologize to her."

"Don't beat yourself up, this is a good thing," Chie looked, "I wonder if we should've just locked them in the broom closet for a few hours. Where is she now?"

"I have no idea, she just ran off. She might've gone straight home. I sent her a text, but she hasn't said anything."

"Well, that would be Roka. She's always tough and obedient, but she's a big softy on the inside."

"If you want to continue with the planning, we're gonna' have to tighten things up. It could get bumpy from here…"

"Yeah, working on these two is like herding cats," Chie leaned in front of Yuuki, "Yuuki, you okay?"

"I think it was just a little too much for him, he's been through a lot. After everything else, he gets his first kiss from a girl he thought hated him."

Chie, in her joy, decided to have a little fun.

She leaned closer, in front of Yuuki's face, "Sir, do you remember what the perp looked like? Can you tell me the make and model of the lips? When she ran, did you get a look at the license plate?"

A corner of Yuuki's parted mouth twitched.

"You can try if you want, he's been like that ever since lunch, dead to the world. I don't think he even left his seat between classes. When I found him, he was in the same place where Koto and I left him."

"I know how to get him outta' that," Chie stood up straight.

"Oh yeah?"

"You just need to apply a little force…" she flexed her hand while rolling up her sleeve.

Eiichi watched, "Force?"

Chie flattened her hand with the fingers together, extended straight with the thumb curved in. Yuuki must have really been catatonic, because during this entire display, he made no indication that he was aware of what was about to transpire. Even classical conditioning seemed to fail him here.

Pivoting at the elbow, Chie brought her hand up, and quickly swung down, creating a pulverizing collision with the crown of Yuuki's head, causing his eyes to pop open. His entire frame jolted in its seat as if hit with an electric shock.

Eiichi could swear he heard the Windows reboot jingle playing behind Yuuki's consciousness, ' _Where the fuck did that come from…_ '

" _Ow!_ " Yuuki's hands instinctively reached up and rubbed the top of his head, "What'd you do that for!?"

"Welcome back!" Chie smiled.

"You didn't have to hit me!" Yuuki continued rubbing his head.

"Wow, pretty effective," Eiichi marveled.

Chie unrolled her sleeve, "Works every time. If he gets like that, just give him a good thump and he should be fine."

"I'm not an appliance!"

"Hm, I'll have to remember that," Eiichi pondered.

"Don't join her!"

Chie looked at Eiichi, "You'll get the hang of it. From what you've told me, you've been a pretty good senpai."

Eiichi stepped over and leaned in next to her, "You were gone for quite a while there. Do you remember what day it is?"

"I know what day it is!" Yuuki irked, tired from the two upperclassman picking at him, "It's just that…everything is just so…" he huffed and turned his gaze back down.

"Yeah, it must have been a lot to take in," said Chie.

"Yuuki, you don't have to bother telling Chie anything, I gave her a full update."

"That's wonderful…" Yuuki said in bland sarcasm and cradled his head, "I don't even know what's going on anymore…"

While Eiichi stood and stepped away, Chie laid a hand on Yuuki's shoulder.

"You'll be fine. Once Koto-chan gets here, we can take a walk and discuss it more. Eiichi, when does she get out of her meetings usually?"

"I texted her earlier to let her know where we are," Eiichi checked his phone, "I don't know what's taking her so long, she should be out by now."

"Let's give it a few more minutes and then we can go bother her."

Eiichi's phone began ringing while he had been looking at it, and it was both a relief and an alarm to see Roka's name appear on the screen. Chie had turned her head from consoling Yuuki, and Eiichi did the same. His phone continued to make a ruckus as they stared at each other.

Eiichi pressed the accept button and gradually raising the phone to his ear, "Hello…"

' _I screwed up! I screwed up! I screwed up! I screwed up! I just know it! He hates me now! I just know it! He didn't say anything! That's why I ran and now I don't know what to do!_ …' a high pitched, panicky ranting resounded from his speaker and Eiichi had to pull the phone away.

"Whoa! Whoa! _Whoa_! C-Calm…Calm down!" he began walking off the path, not sure that Yuuki should hear this.

Despite his protest, the ranting continued, ' _What was I thinking!? Eiichi, what do I do-what do I do!?_ '

"What you need to do is take a breath," thankful she wasn't in front of him right now.

'I can't! I can't Eiichi! I'm trying, but I can't calm down!'

Eiichi spoke slowly, "If you just stop yourself a moment, you'll be fine. You're just having a panic attack, it'll go away. You really didn't do anything wrong, he's just really shaken up. I have to say, you really knocked his socks off with that. I'm happy for you, he needed a wakeup call, and that…just about did it."

'But this is moving things too fast, I just wanted to talk with him,' her voice whimpered.

Eiichi dragged on his ecig once she began talking slower, "Don't deny yourself those affections, you did what you felt necessary. You expressed yourself the only way you could to get it across."

'I'm so freaked out and I don't even know why…'

"That's love, you're just concerned for him. It doesn't matter what you do from here, you're going to feel off about everything because you haven't heard from him yet."

'What is he saying?' she gasped.

"He hasn't really said anything, he's still processing it, which isn't a bad sign really."

'Eiichi…if he says no, I don't know if I could handle it…'

"I'm not saying that's his answer, but if it turns out to be, you will handle it."

There was really no way for him to put it so she wouldn't create more questions for herself, her voice shuddered over the line.

"It's only your first time confessing, so if that turns out to be the case, it's going to hurt, but Chie and I are right here for you. Listen, we're out by the path in front of the school. We're waiting on Koto to get here, but when she does, we're all going someplace to eat, you should come."

'No…no I don't know if I could do that.'

"I know you're scared, and you might feel very awkward around him, but you two should talk, and with us around it will make things easier. I'm going to talk with Chie and Koto about creating some time for you two."

'No, no, I—'

"Okay, are you still on campus? I'm going to come get you, where can I find you?"

The voice on the other end was silent and Eiichi became concerned she might hang up.

"Roka, you can do this. It's going to come eventually, please don't run."

There was more shuttered breathing on the other end of the line.

'I'm by the courtyard, around the main building…'

"Okay, I'll be there in—" Eiichi's text tone went off.

He looked at his screen and saw it was from an unknown number.

Giving it some consideration, he pressed receive…

Eiichi burst into a fit of panic, "Roka! Stay where you are! I'll meet you in a few minutes!"

'Wh-What!?'

"I promise, I'll call you back!" he clapped his phone shut.

"What's going on!?" Chie looked over at him.

He had no time to explain.

He pointed at Chie, "Stay with Yuuki!" and bolted off toward the building at a full sprint.

He could hear her shouting behind him, "Where are you going!?"

* * *

'I'm out by the main path with Yuuki, he's still pretty dazed and confused. I let Chie know what happened and she's on her way. No idea where Roka is, but I'm waiting to hear back from her. When you get done with your meeting, let's all go someplace to eat. All this excitement has been a real pain in my head and has made me hungry. Hopefully Roka can join us, I'm worried about her.'

Kotonoha had received the message during her meeting.

An evening out with everyone would be a delightful thing to look forward to, even though it was a Monday. Coming up to the end of the year meant more studying, but everyone felt like celebrating a little early from time to time, especially Eiichi and Chie, she imagined. It would also be reason for them to celebrate Roka and Yuuki's progress. She had no doubt things would work out between them, and only the best wishes for hopeful, little Roka. She only wished she could be beside Eiichi, helping them along, but it seemed while he had his work, she had hers.

Discussions had been long and monotonous. The year was wrapping up and there were ending ceremonies for teams and clubs to arrange, as well as the graduation ceremony as a grand finale.

Every time the subject of graduation came up, it sent Kotonoha off into wistful daydreams of symbolic endings and new beginnings. She couldn't wait to see Eiichi actually wearing his uniform properly, and how handsome he would look. She could see him receiving his diploma, and then the thought swayed her over to pining their school flower on his lapel, and she had to fight back tears every time. She kept telling herself he just wouldn't be on campus anymore. He was moving on to bigger and better things, and in only two years, she'd be joining him. It was such a beautiful thing and…despite her efforts, she knew she'd be a sentimental mess on that day.

She understood his reasons for not liking school, but despite his complaining, he had worked so hard under her tutoring, and deserved every reward in return, and more. She was so happy for him, she wanted to do something special, besides the trip to Onna. She had been contemplating getting a gift for him, and in addition, had planned a special night for just the two of them, to reward him in an extra special way for his efforts and gratitude.

After discussions, there had not been much left for the council. With forms submitted, but a lot of work ahead of them in ceremony preparations, the meeting ended ahead of schedule and the girls briskly began grabbing their things while Otome remained at the main table, with only a few more forms to finish.

During the entire meeting, Kotonoha had been paying close attention to her. Eiichi's information had been disturbing to a degree. She could respect that other girls had their fantasies, as long as they kept those to themselves, but what Eiichi explained about Otome had set her on edge.

It had been difficult for her to grasp at first, but she understood Otome had undergone some kind of bizarre, immediate change.

What had she been looking for when she approached him? Did she really want to just have sex with him? And the fact that she would even outrightly approach him that way, knowing they were devoted to each other. Did she even have an understanding of the promises and boundaries within a relationship?

She really wanted to confront Otome, but other than asking why she was following Eiichi around, there was not much else she could ask. And when she thought about it, this would make her sound just like everyone else, when she had been suffering through her own persecution. Not only that, the information Eiichi had disclosed to her was not something just anyone would know. It wasn't even something an everyday human being would know. Kotonoha would just end up sounding like she didn't want Otome to talk to Eiichi, period. Considering the risks, it was not something far from her wishes, but unreasonable none the less.

Otome had submitted her prior forms in time, and all she had left was a small stack of assessments to fill out. She had definitely been behaving differently.

First of all, the council meetings had again, become a time in Kotonoha's day she didn't look forward to, because Otome continued to make things difficult. Before Kotonoha met Eiichi, she had dreaded this sort of thing. Now she simply dealt with it, but it was no less tiring. Second, Otome's complaining and lack of efforts had become routine for Kotonoha now. In the respect of being the council executive, she didn't care if Otome liked her or not, just that she did what was required of her. Though her complaints had never been consistent, her general mood had been crass toward Kotonoha. However, today the difference in Otome's behavior had been out of the ordinary. She didn't argue, she seemed less moody, and even a little animate with her speech.

As the girls were leaving, Kotonoha had just stood from her seat to grab her bag when Otome approached her.

"Katsura-san, a sensei brought a few boxes of unused text books to me that they wanted us to put away until next year. I was thinking we could place them in the storage room down the hall. They're pretty heavy and I wanted to ask if you could help me."

Otome didn't bother to indicate where they were, but when Kotonoha had entered, she noticed an arrangement of four, moderately sized boxes that had not been there before, sitting near the door.

"Are these from the library rental records?" she stepped over to the boxes.

"Um, yeah. They said they'll be getting some new editions in pretty soon, and so they don't know where to put these for now."

Another strange outcome, Otome was asking her for help. Despite what Eiichi had said, maybe she was just going through a phase. Kotonoha could try being more understanding towards her situation. She knew Otome had been close to Makoto.

The two deaths had shaken the school pretty hard and students who knew them personally were still recovering. Events in people's lives could make some extreme changes, and being around Eiichi had exposed Kotonoha to an unseen world going on behind the faces of people she saw every day. People were always expressing the opposite of what they felt.

She and Eiichi had their own views, based on their own experiences. However, they could only sympathize with the emotional sufferings of others, even if the choices of those had only aided in the demise of the departed.

Otome had obviously been stressed about something for the past couple weeks, or else she wouldn't have created such a fuss. Kotonoha was hopeful this change in her attitude, versus whatever she was feeling inside, did not mean she had suffered any severe trauma recently. She could be reacting in a very negative way to what was bothering her. If that was the case, she wondered if maybe they could still help her.

"Okay," Kotonoha nodded, "I can help."

"Thank you! I even brought the dolly, it's right here," Otome went to grab it, right next to the boxes.

She actually sounded relieved, and Kotonoha couldn't help feeling remorse for her rash thinking. Maybe Otome really was suffering with some kind of emotional instability, and only needed a kind hand.

Otome pushed the dolly over and held it while Kotonoha tugged on a stack of two boxes to slide onto its base.

"Otome, has anything been troubling you lately?" she stood.

"Um, w-what gave you that thought?" Otome kicked the dolly forward hastily.

Kotonoha held the door for her, "Well, Eiichi told me you approached him earlier today, wanting to apologize about what happened between you and him last year."

"Oh…he…told you about that, didn't he?"

It was a Monday, after school, close to the end of the year and the halls were vacant. Most students were either home studying, or in the library.

Kotonoha was silent a moment, contemplating her next question, "I was very much aware of what you and the other girls were doing, but it was Eiichi who told me of your actual plans, the one's you failed to inform me of, because you knew I would say something."

This time Otome was silent.

"Otome, why would you do something like that? Do you realize how traumatizing that could have been for people?"

Otome was looking away now as she pushed the dolly closer to the storage room.

And then she turned to Kotonoha, her voice sounding a little perky, "I guess I realized where we went wrong with that. I thought it was all harmless fun, just a prank. But talking about it with you has helped me to realize just how wrong it really was. I promise I'll never do it again, and I hope we can learn to put that behind us," she finished with a smile.

Kotonoha considered this while she slowly looked forward at their stop. If she could get Otome to open up about it, she could help her learn that she is not as judgmental as Otome might think she is. She might even be able to help her with her infatuation with Eiichi, like he did with Yuuki. It was possible they could become good friends.

"Do you have the keys?" she asked.

"Right here. You take that and I'll hold the door."

Otome produced the storage keys from her skirt pocket, while Kotonoha stepped behind to man the dolly.

"If that's what's been bothering you lately, you can talk with me about it. I know we've been arguing a lot, but I'm willing to listen to you, if you're okay with it."

There was no response to Kotonoha's offer. Otome had inserted the keys, but looked like she was having problems. She had to shake them vigorously a couple times.

"Oh my gosh," her perky voice sounded, "I think the lock on this door is old. It's giving me some trouble…there we go."

Otome twisted the knob and pushed the door forward, stepping into the storage room.

Inside it was cramped and dark, with a left turn from the doorway. Otome flipped a switch, and a dim, yellow light unveiled more, the left turn leading to a dead end in a space that was roughly ten feet long and six feet wide, but constrained with boxes on all sides. Boxes stacked all the way up to the ceiling, along with tin shelving that only supported more dusty boxes. There were a few other miscellaneous items lying about, a forgotten pen on one of the shelves, brooms and a mob leaned in a corner across from the entrance.

Otome leaned her back against the door with her hand on the knob, allowing Kotonoha enough space to push the dolly through.

She pushed it right up to one of the tin shelving arrangements and maneuvered it facing sideways so they could grab the boxes easier. She looked up and down and along the dusty space.

"I'm not sure why you thought to put them in here, I can't see any place where they will fit."

The light from the hall vanished behind her, leaving her with nothing but the glow from the dim bulb overhead, and she heard a sharp clank as the door behind her slammed shut.

Kotonoha whipped around immediately, expecting to see just a blank door and an empty space. Had this been the case, she would have knocked and called out to Otome, that she might have stepped out and the door accidental shut itself, but it was not.

A tall masculine figure stood under the yellow glow, his eyes shaded under his slicked, brown hair. He must have been hiding in the corner behind the door when Otome opened it. His arms were not quite at their sides, as if ready to move quick, and in the light, his stature looked bigger than she had remembered. Had it been any other student, it would not have been as terrifying to her, but the knowledge of this person, what he was capable of, struck a familiar fear into her heart.

"You two have fun in there!" Otome's voice sounded from outside the door.

Instinct pulled Kotonoha's back up against the tin shelving behind her.

"What're you doing!?" she yelped.

Taisuke took a step forward.

She didn't have a lot of time, the room was too cramped. She slid away, into the available space, backing up, her shoe just grazing a set of boxes on the floor that would have tripped her.

"No…" her narrowed vision remained on him.

Taisuke didn't lunge just yet, but turned and continued to pace toward her, probably aware she had nowhere to run this time.

Her frame shook, fear sapped all the blood from her members, making her hands and feet tingle. She kept backing away, disbelief and horror following and clawing after her.

In her panic, she reached to her side and pulled a set of boxes off one of the shelves on to the floor between them. As Taisuke slowly stepped over them, Kotonoha continued to back away from the yellow light, into the shadows of the only available space left.

Her back bumped up against another set of shelves, she had nowhere else to go.

Images of a similar dark place rushed through her head, when she had been pinned against a wall by the very same person, too lost in her own thoughts to know what was going to transpire, until she had been awakened, by a pair of yellow eyes…

There was no time to use her phone, if she reached for it, Taisuke would just move in.

She looked around, she had to find something, anything! A pen would do. If she had taken a moment to think before moving, she could have grabbed one of the broom handles in the corner. If she had to, she'd use one of the boxes to keep Taisuke from getting too close, or just try throwing things at him. If it came down to it, Eiichi had been training her for a while now, and he placed a lot of focus on a close quarters uppercut for her. Her assailant was tall, which only meant her arm had more space to develop momentum. And if that didn't work, she'd kick, claw, bite and scream, and make things as hard for him as possible, she didn't care if he hit her.

And then she saw it. Just in the dim light, on one of the shelves, lay a worn, box cutter. It had a dirty metal grip, not like the cheap, plastic ones you could get at the hundred-yen stores. It must have been left here, long forgotten by a maintenance crewman.

Without a moment's hesitation, she reached out and grabbed it, making sure Taisuke saw.

"What was that?" his voice croaked and he froze in place, he sounded more nervous than he looked.

"Want to find out?"

One shoulder turned toward him in a defensive stance, the box cutter hung behind her leg, out of his sight. She flicked the mechanism and touched it against her thy, to make sure the blade was extended all the way. All her Iaido years came back. Boxing was what she enjoying doing with Eiichi, but Iaido was what she knew.

Even with her weapon, there was no guarantee she would make it out untouched. Her opponent was bigger than her, and he had tried this before.

She felt something wash over her. It wasn't exactly fear, but it wasn't bliss either. Suddenly, she just felt like she didn't care anymore.

"Well, isn't this interesting. I'm suddenly getting déjà vu…" she smiled from the shadows, her voice now cold and smooth, but her words were serrated, "What's the matter Sawanaga? After a good look at me, do I suddenly bore you?" her head swayed a little to the right, keeping her eyes on his towering figure, "Is it because I left you last time? Did you need a reminder? Or would you prefer I still be a virgin, so you can take that from me as well?"

Taisuke didn't move, but made no indication of wanting to continue.

Behind her thy, she rotated the handle so the blade faced up. He was only a few feet from her, but if he advanced, she'd use one hand to grab his coat, and when the blade was in, it would take only a firm upward stroke, and she would open him up like a slaughterhouse pig. He would only have time to try and keep from spilling on to the floor.

2"You can try if you want, and you might even have your way with me…" she temped him, "…but after that, you'll be all mine…Don't worry, Eiichi doesn't have to know…it'll be our little secret…Everywhere you go, you won't be alone. You may finish with me and get away…for a while…but when I finish with you, well…" she chuckled, "…you won't have to worry about satisfying your urges anymore. Seems like a bad way to waste a few seconds of pleasure…"

She didn't really care that Taisuke was shaking now, chest heaving, beads of sweat rolling down from his eyebrows.

She stepped forward and he jumped, taking a step back.

Something about this excited her. She couldn't settle this strange rush of amusement, making her form words that weren't her own, "Do you like butterflies? I love them very much…Let me paint a pretty butterfly on your face…with _big_ , _red_ , _wings_ …"

" _No! No please!_ " he crumbled before her, kowtowing and pleading. "Please don't kill me! It was all her idea! I was just supposed to kiss you!"

She couldn't stop herself, "You were? Well that's awful strange, are you sure you still don't want to try?"

" _Ah!_ " Taisuke scrambled off his feet and made for the door, but tripped over the spilled boxes behind him.

She followed after him at a smooth gait.

He crawled up to the door and tugged on the knob, then began pounding on it while on his knees.

"Otome! Otome, let me out! _Let me outta' here!_ "

"Better hurry up, or she may not answer in time~" she sang from behind him.

The metallic pounding became more violent, the door jarred on its hinges.

"Louder~ I'm not sure she heard you…"

Taisuke's screams became hoarse, " _Help me! Help me, please!_ "

Over his noise, Kotonoha thought she could hear muffled, conflicting voices from outside the door.

'Let her out!'

'What are you talking about!?'

'I saw the whole thing! You locked her in there! Gimme' the keys!'

'No!'

Taisuke pounded on the door with more intensity, " _Give her the keys! Give her the keys! Please God, give her the keys!_ "

Moments later, the knob jiggled, and the door swung open, colliding with his face.

Kotonoha backed away and watched placidly as he fell on his butt, but seeing his window, immediately scurried to his feet. The person that had opened the door was pushed to the side as he rampantly made his way out. Kotonoha retracted, and pocketed the box cutter, unnoticed.

"You coward! She's just a girl!" she could hear Otome's frustrated shouting.

The girl who had been pushed aside stepped further into the storage room, and Kotonoha found herself looking upon a familiar face. The last time she saw this person, she had been crying by a roadside. Kotonoha could still remember her red face squished between her hands.

"Umi-san!?" Kotonoha gasped.

"Katsura-sama!" Umi's youthful face lit up and she rushed forward, embracing Kotonoha.

"U-Umi, what are you doing here?" Umi's small ponytail flapped near her cheek.

Umi held her by the arms, glimmering at her, "I was on my way to meet with my friends when I saw you, and then that girl locked you in here!"

The fear came back, for some reason, she had forgotten all about it. Maybe it had been from excepting her fate, or finding herself gazing upon this precious face she never thought she'd see here. Whatever the reasons, Kotonoha couldn't stop herself from embracing Umi even tighter, this innocent girl had become her unforeseen savior.

"Thank you…thank you so much for saving me," she muttered.

"I sent Eiichi-sama a text when I saw what happened, but I knew I couldn't wait for him. K…Katsura-sama, why did she do that to you?"

The mocking laughter, the jeering, the manipulation, the lies, the cold looks, it all came back.

Kotonoha gripped Umi, "She's a mean person Umi…Don't believe anything she tells you…" and released her.

She turned and stepped out of the storage room toward Otome at her still calm gait, while Umi stayed behind. Otome was looking furiously down the hall where Taisuke had ran, but as soon as she turned and saw Kotonoha, panic spread on her face.

"It…It was just a joke…" Otome staggered back.

Kotonoha steadily paced toward her, her hand slipped into her skirt pocket.

"L-Like I said before…it was all in good fun…"

"You locked me in there, with _him_ …" all she could see was Otome.

"C-Can't you take a joke?"

She was lying, even now, she was boldly lying, even when the truth stared her in the face. She needed to be taught a lesson.

Kotonoha picked up her pace and withdrew her hand.

She felt a pressure around her wrist that pulled her back and made her feet skid forward. She turned.

Eiichi was standing right behind her, panting heavily, his hand wrapped in a firm grip around her wrist, preventing her from revealing the box cutter.

His eyes had a familiar terror in them, "What were you about to do?"

She didn't even know herself. Suddenly, she couldn't recognize where she was. She had been grabbed and pulled away to that dark place. Everything felt wrong, like before, when she left him, when she jumped. She wanted to tell him she was sorry, she just wanted to make sense of everything, at any cost. Just like before, she felt she didn't even know herself.

' _She locked me in there, Eiichi! She locked me in there with him!_ ' she cried out to him, not even sure if he would hear.

The pressure on her wrist pulled her to him, she felt his hand behind her head, and her vision darkened against his expanding chest. His smell engulfed her senses. It was kind, protective, but scared. She could feel his heart beating fast.

"Come back to me…" she felt his breath on her ear.

She wanted to, but something wouldn't let go of her, ' _She was laughing at me Eiichi…she wanted to hurt me…_ '

"She didn't know…she didn't know…" she felt him smoothing her hair.

His fingers adjusted themselves on her wrist.

"Let it go…"

She forgot the box cutter was still in her hand. She wanted to use it, and she could remember why now. She wanted to make her stop, she wanted to make them all stop, and leave her alone, for good.

She gripped it tighter, but his hand remained firm.

"Let it go…"

She was so close to him, and felt so far away. Something fought inside her, it snarled and spat at both of them, while holding her back. It wanted her to do it. It made her want to do it.

It wouldn't let go of her, and she was afraid of it, it would take her away from him. She reached out in the dark and felt a hand grasp hers. He pulled on her, and the anger let go. The closer he pulled her, the laughter went away, the quieter the noises became, and the world around her began to take shape again.

She felt the box cutter fall to the bottom of her pocket. Her arms hung limp as he removed his grip and pressed her close to him. She couldn't cry, but she wanted to.

"Oh, isn't that just enchanting," Otome's voice met her ears.

She felt his head lift from her shoulder.

Otome spoke slowly, every word burning with her scorn, "The two lovers are reunited at last. I'm feeling all warm n' fuzzy now."

' _Please, make her stop_ …' she pleaded.

She could hear Eiichi's tensed voice next to her ear, "Otome, you'll be feeling the back of my hand if you continue any further. Or maybe I should just unleash her on you." She could feel his fingertips against her head, but they softened. She knew he never wanted to hurt her.

"Oh no, did the Hero of Sakakino just threaten a girl? That's very unbecoming, though he's been seen doing more unbecoming things than that."

Eiichi's hand loosened a moment, and she felt his heart slow down.

"What're you talking about…"

"It would be completely understandable. You've been getting so much attention lately, it must be exhausting, and every man has his weakness. Katsura-san, would you like to hear what I have to say?"

She shuddered at her spite. She didn't want to hear anything she had to say. She just wanted to leave, she just wanted them to go home.

She felt Otome's words directed right at her, "I saw him taking in a lively evening with one of my basketball members, alone, in a storage room. I believe it was Kitsuregawa, if you want to ask her yourself. They were getting pretty physical with each other. I didn't know you were into petit girls, Eiichi-' _sama_ '…"

Roka? And Eiichi? But why? He would never do something like that. He had told her all about Roka. She was in love! How could this person holding her have ever betrayed her trust? Though it wouldn't have been the first time someone did that.

' _Eiichi, is it true?_ ' she had always trusted him, but her doubts were beginning to nip at her.

His hand loosed, and she looked up into his rigid, kind face, his piercing blue eyes with a lock of his black hair between them. She loved this face, and all the good things it entailed.

He was smiling at her, "You remember what I told you. Do you believe her?"

Otome had already lied to her, and committed an awful crime against her, why should she give her anymore trust? And now she was trying to destroy something that was hers, something that was more precious to her than anything, something that Otome had no concept of.

Kotonoha gently pushed on his chest and moved so that she was standing next to him. Her hand slid into his.

She faced Otome and spoke with the reserve that she was best known for, "You shouldn't speak so ill of Kitsuregawa Roka if she is a teammate of yours. She has become a good friend of mine recently."

Otome returned simply, "Isn't that a little suspicious, her just showing up out of the blue?"

"If Eiichi ever did anything wrong, he would have told me by now. He has always been honest with me, even when it hurt. What I want to know is how you know this? What motivated such a discovery?"

"What does it matter, I'm not lying."

"You may not be lying, but what you discovered may have only been what you led yourself to believe," she looked at Eiichi and then back to Otome, "Eiichi introduced me to Roka. She is deeply in love with another friend of mine, and it has been a blessing for the two of us to have witnessed their love flourishing. I know more of Eiichi than you possibly could, and I cannot see him tarnishing something so precious, when he has worked so hard to bring it to light. If he did, it would destroy him."

"You seem pretty confident, but you can't just go on hope and warm feelings," Otome spat.

"Eiichi has already informed me about everything. He has been consoling Roka for some time. I understand what he must do sometimes to mitigate others, and I am comfortable with it, most of the time. Though I wish he would keep me better informed…" she passed a skeptical look at Eiichi, who cleared his throat. Looking back at Otome, "I understand because he did the same for me, when you use to menace me quite regularly. I trust both of them. Eiichi and I have been very honest with each other. I've told him about the students who have eyes for me, and he's even talked with me about you."

"He what…" Otome gaped.

"I know that you have been interested in Eiichi for some time Otome, this is nothing new to me. Why are you always so interested in the people that I hold dear?"

Otome only fumed and didn't say anything.

"You've been trying to blame us for nothing, when the only one at fault is you."

Otome began behaving erratically, gritting her teeth, her hands clenching repeatedly, and Kotonoha wondered if she remembered they were still standing in front of her. Rough, unfinished words escaped between her gaping mouth. Her chest began heaving and Kotonoha could hear her strained breaths. Suddenly, Otome broke into frustrated fits of rage, screaming at her and Eiichi.

"You're wrong! I know what I saw! He's a lech!" she pointed, "You can't just continue letting him lie to you! You may think you've changed, but you're just the same, weak, stupid bitch you were last year! He's just like Mak—"

" _If I have to hear that name one more time, I will end you!_ "

If possible, she never wanted to remember that person again, much less hear him compared with Eiichi.

Otome's final resort broke and shattered in midair, silent and unseen pieces scattered across the floor. She just stood there, with her finger extended, lost and empty.

Kotonoha felt Eiichi's hand loosen in hers and she turned. He must have noticed something, he had that shock on his face when something happened out of the ordinary.

"Katsura-sama! I found this! It's still on…"

Everyone turned as Umi came running to them from the storage room. In her hands was a camcorder, with the view lens open, and black electrical tape over the recording light.

"I noticed it sitting next to a box on a shelf."

She couldn't believe what she was seeing. Otome wanted to record the whole thing. She wanted to record her being invaded by that lowlife!

Dreaded shock stabbed her, and then was quelshed over with consuming rage.

She turned immediately on the terrified Otome, but Eiichi's arm barred her off as he moved himself in front of her, and forward. Kotonoha thought he was actually going to hit her.

"It's the same thing with you every time, isn't it?" he snarled.

Kotonoha couldn't see around Eiichi, but she heard Otome whimper.

"You never learn, you _fucking idiot_!"

She wanted to see and stepped out to the side.

Whatever Eiichi had told Kotonoha before must have changed, because it was apparent Otome still cared about what he thought.

Her eyes welt up before him. She staggered, looking around, seeming disoriented. She looked at each of them and Kotonoha could see tears. She croaked, like she was trying to say something, and then her hands wiped across her face before she turned and ran.

Eiichi didn't move after that, and when she saw him, she wanted to hold him again.

He placed a hand to his face, "Oh God, what did I just do…"

"I don't think you did anything wrong. Serves her right," Umi said.

"You don't understand!" he turned, but he was only looking at Kotonoha, "She was changing, she was finally beginning to understand again."

"What're you talking about?" Umi asked.

"I've to go find her," he turned.

"Eiichi…" she didn't want him to go.

He turned back around and approached her, speaking desperately, "Koto, I can still help her. Something like this could destroy her, especially after what I just said. Think about when you were alone, when no else would go near you. Think about what that felt like. Would you let that happen to someone else?" He pleaded to her, "What she did was horrible, but she's not thinking straight. I can't let it end like this, I can still fix her."

She didn't know what to say to this. She had been willing to help her before, but everything that just happened had ruined that, and yet he still wanted to push on. How could he expect her to understand, even if he knew. All she knew was that she didn't want him to leave.

"Eiichi, you can't fix everyone."

His face hardened with resolve, "I can still try."

He disappeared down the hall, while she stood, waiting.

Umi approached with the camera in hand, "I'm going to tell the school about this. She could be expelled."

"No Umi…"

"But why not!?"

"Give me the camera. I'll destroy the footage and wait for him to come back."

"Why are you protecting her?"

She just had to trust that he was right. She couldn't do what he could, so she had to rely on his words, and he had never let her down before.

"Eiichi sees things in people. He can tell if they're genuine or corrupted. He's very good at it. That girl has been suffering. She has a guilty heart and it's caused her to do some awful things. Give me the camera and go about your day. I'll wait here…"

* * *

He found her outside one of the exit doors. Trying to find a place where no one would see her, she had wandered alongside the building, away from view. She found a spot against the wall to curl up and release her agony, before continuing on to drag herself home, where she would continue with more of the same, awaiting whatever doom that would befall in her future.

She was there now, face buried in arms against a protective wall of bent knees. He didn't bother prepping himself for the full coarse of suffering he was about to adhere, and stepped forward as soon as he saw her.

She raised her head as he approached.

Pushing away, the bottom of her skirt rubbed against the grass and her legs folded out before she clamored to get up.

"St…stay away from me…" red, puffy eyes gazed timidly back at him, a cautious hand gestured a futile defense.

He did stop, but only to look upon her, and survey with deep remorse the damage he had caused.

"Come back to gloat?" she feebly tried to turn back to harshness through a weak voice, "Well gloat away! I hope you're happy! I'm wrong, you're right! What's new!?" she wiped her nose.

"I'm sorry…"

This only confused her, making her output flare up, "For what!? You're sorry for what!? I'm the one that tried to hurt you! I'm the bad one, right!?"

"I only see a sad, broken girl…"

"Oh spare me the therapist talk! It might have worked on them, but it's not going to work on me! You said I'm the idiot? You're the idiot!"

"Nobody's perfect…"

"Shut up! Just shut up and leave me alone!" Otome shrieked.

He turned his hands, palms facing toward her, and began walking.

"Wh…What're you doing…" her eyes darted nervously around him as she stepped back. "If you think hugging me will fix things, it won't! That's crap!"

She had only ever wanted him near her, and instead she was pushing him away. This too brought her pain, and the closer he got, the more painful it became.

"Stop! I said stay away!" she looked at him frantically, wanting to run away, but her fateful attraction held her, with one hand on the wall, the other in front of him.

She shoved him with the defensive hand, more pushing herself away, "Idiot!"

He grabbed it by the wrist, while her other whacked him on the shoulder.

She grunted in frustration, more hitting, " _Let go of me_ … _idiot_!"

A soothing arm wrapped around her, and she continued to struggle, pushing against him.

" _You fuckin'_ … _s-stupid_ …"

He didn't force her any further, and only waited.

When she thought she had been lied to, she had only led herself to believing a lie. If she wanted to trust him so much, he was giving her the opportunity. He was now closer to her than she could have ever imagined possible.

She struggled and writhed, her hand patting against coat and pushing, hitting him as hard as she could, but he held her, until it slowed down.

Her head tipped forward with gritted teeth hissing, and then deep, raspy gasps followed between long, broken wales. Her vicious arm collapsed against him, one fist near her chin as she tensed up, shaking, and buried her face. He cradled her head, and let go of her fighting hand. It landed on his shoulder with a half hazard hit.

He held her, speaking through her cries, "This is what you saw Roka and me doing. She had hurt someone she loved, and was deeply remorseful, just like you…"

With as bad as she wanted to be with him, she only ever kept her distance. He knew the shame that plagued her, he knew the loss, and she had attached her thoughts to him, to escape all of it.

"You're not a bad person Otome…you've just made some mistakes…"

"I…I just want…"

"I know you do. You're beautiful Otome…but I can't do that. I love Koto…"

 _You're beautiful_. The words lit her output on fire, with little concern for the remainder. He knew it would do this, but she needed to hear it. Her mind had been giving her a beating for some time, and because of his anger and loosing trust with her, he had allowed it to happen. For this, he was ashamed.

"Otome, you don't have to keep hiding. Let yourself be loved."

Passion whirred out of her sorrow and pain.

"Please…"

"No…I can't let you do that…"

She was sorry, she did want his forgiveness, and for things to change, but she wanted to take something that she could not have. It might hurt her, but she had to understand.

Before he could say more, before he even realized it, her hands gripped him by the collar, they had been close enough, and before he could stop her, it happened.

Her eyes had remained closed, but so close to his they became a blur under her bangs brushing against his. The softness of her lips, a refreshing irony to her coarse manner, sucked the innocence from him as her cool nose touched next to his.

"Mm!... _Mm!_ "

His arms came undone, but hers remained, pulling the fabric of his shirt taught across his neck, pulling him closer against his protest, her waist pressing against him. His mistake had been trying to back away while pushing her at the same time. She followed after, a dead weight, still clinging to him, and his heel slipped against hers.

She just wanted something to take away, but she wanted too much.

He didn't even feel the impact when his back hit the ground, the weight of her chest on his, her legs between his, her lips still pushing against his, all his, all that belonged to someone else.

He gripped her shoulders and shoved away, their lips parted with the gentle sucking of air.

They stared at each other, chests heaving, her hands still on his collar, shoulders propped on his arms. He witnessed as her astonished triumph turned to self-deprecating dread. The pain from before had been nothing compared with the realization of what she had done, how much she had hurt him. It seized her heart, allowing her to only produce whispers of remorse.

"Please…forgive me…"

She hoisted herself off him and clambered from her knees on to her feet, leaving him to prop himself up on his elbows.

"Otome…" he muttered, trying, wishing to calm the violent fumes of her output.

She backed away, raising a hand to guilty lips on a tortured face, the tears returning, "I'm sorry…" her last words before releasing a gasp, she turned away and broke into a run.

"Otome, wait!"

Why didn't he stop her!? He could have said more! He could have said something to ease her and prevent this.

"Shit…shit…" he rolled over on his knees and clutched his head.

He just wanted to help her, but he got too close. Now, he had taken some of her pain and bore it himself.

And then he thought of Koto. She was right, he should have never gone after her. How was she going to take this? She had just been through enough.

He moved a hand to his mouth, "Oh no…"

He got up rigidly, every limb felt alien to him, and began walking to the entrance door, just as lost as she had been.

He had to tell her.

* * *

He saw her waiting for him in the hall, the camcorder beneath her clasped hands. The hall was more empty than it had been before. The girl that had been there earlier had left, she was probably the one who sent him the text. Koto had been waiting for him this whole time, alone.

He could not bring himself to look at her.

"Did it go well?" she didn't sound distressed anymore.

He made sure he didn't get too close to her.

"What's wrong?"

He kept his eyes to the floor, and muttered, "Otome won't be bothering us anymore…"

"That's good to know, but…why won't you look at me?"

He wasn't ready. No matter what he thought, he would not be ready. It should never have happened.

"Eiichi…" it hurt to hear her say his name now.

Everything that anyone had said about him sounded so hollow in his head. Torio, Yuuki, Chie, Roka, and her…he had just proven them all wrong.

He took a deep breath and tensed up, "She kissed me…"

Of course, there was no response to this.

And then he did something he never thought he would have to do before her. Slowly, he knelt down on one knee, then brought the other next to it. He placed his hands on the floor at her feet and lowered his head.

He couldn't see her, but bitter shock and dismay was all that painted her output, and likely her face, but he was waiting for the change, he knew it was coming.

She stepped so she was standing right in front of him, "Get up..." her voice stern, but when he did not respond, she became more shrill, " _Get-Up_..."

He saw it coming, just like he should have seen the kiss.

He saw her face for just a second, when a crack echoed through the empty hall, and a force caused his head to whip to the side, followed by the sting and warm rush of blood to his cheek.

He stayed that way, still seeing the back of her ejected hand out of the corner of his eye.

Before he could turn back to averting his eyes from her wrath, two hands grabbed him by the collar, and he nearly reacted as he did with Otome.

Releasing a wet sob, she forced her lips to his, wanting to erase the damage that had been done. He could feel warm streams trickling between the pressed corners of their mouths.

He did not feel worthy to embrace her, and she did not want him to.

He had no time to ponder and ask after she released him. With another gasp and a hand to her mouth, her back was to him, and she took off down the hall, her steps echoing swiftly.

His mouth parted and shut itself, trying to say the words, just the right ones that would fix it, that would undo all of it; the right words to the girl still standing before him in his mind. He shuddered, and then shuffled over to the wall, leaning a hand on it for support. As if her presence had been a shield, an escape from all the noises, now his head felt heavy, his chest was tight, but there was no one around to cause him pain. There was no one, only him.

He placed his back against the wall and sank.

He had been doing a lot of running around and a lot of thinking, and he was tired. He just needed to sit down for a while.

 **AN:** It was hard to write this one.

1 "Honey" by Van Larkins

2 "One look in her lusting eyes, savage fear in you will rise, teeth of terror sinking in, the bite of the _she-wolf_ " - Megadeth


	12. Chapter 12 Glow

**Chapter 12: Glow**

Yuuki had not been keeping track of time since he started walking through the vacant halls of the school, but it had been long enough for him to know that Chie had sent him off on a wild goose chase.

After Eiichi started barking orders and then running off without so much as an explanation, Chie stuck around to continue consoling him in her own ridiculous way, which involved clinging on him in that manner that made him question if she remembered they were siblings. This was while making assumptive statements that only made him more uncomfortable.

'Look, my lil' brother gots himself a guurl-frieend~'

'Knock it off!'

Half an hour must have passed before they realized Kotonoha and Eiichi weren't coming. Chie sent them both text messages to no avail. After another half hour, it was beginning to get dark and the school would be closing campus in an hour, which was about Chie's cue to take charge of things.

They entered the main building and Chie ordered Yuuki to check the first floor while she checked the second and to message if either found one of their three missing friends. If one of them finished before the other, they needed to message and continue on to the third floor, and even the roof if necessary.

And thus, here he was, footsteps echoing eerily through shadowed, vacant halls, because the lights had been turned off long ago, like something out of a high school horror anime; the dimming orange shades of sunlight through the windows turning to pale purple.

What had Eiichi been thinking? First yelling at Roka over the phone, probably making her freak out more, and then shouting at them to stay put, disappearing without a word, and not returning, nor even notifying them why. He knew he'd given Eiichi a hard time, and he figured some of the crap Eiichi put him through for Kotonoha had been payback, but he really had some nerve. Yuuki did have questions, but he had been too worn out to ask them. Chie said they had to look for them, because Eiichi's outburst and all the dead air had been just too weird not to, and she seemed like she was getting worried. Another look down a dark hall made him think she was probably right.

He took his phone out and checked the time. Still about forty-five minutes to go.

He knew Eiichi had been talking to Roka. He didn't catch the whole conversation, Eiichi made sure of that, but as he had been coming to, he did hear her staticy voice over Eiichi's speaker, and she sounded very stressed.

The thought of her still had his mind spinning into a cyclone. All this time? If she had been denying it, then how long had she really…felt that way? He did hear Eiichi talking to him before, he wasn't completely gone, there was just so much he didn't understand. They had all known about this and kept it from him, but with the best intentions? How was he supposed to benefit from that?

He did have questions…if only he knew she was here.

Okay, no going into perplexed pondering now, he had to focus to get away from that.

Everybody had just disappeared. What could have happened to them? What if he messaged Chie and she never responded back?

A chill ran up his spine just as he was passing a window showing into the courtyard. He could see someone. They were sitting on a bench beneath a tree.

A closer look revealed a head of long black hair, and a girl's Sakakino uniform, women's blazer and all. Her back was too him, but he would recognize those ebony locks anywhere.

The door leading out was only a few steps from where he came. When he pushed it open, the first thing to greet his face was the cool spring air, much better than the stagnant space within the halls, but after that, he could hear crying.

He made his way down the short steps and moved further into the courtyard.

Upon closer observation, it was apparent she really was crying, hunched forward, hands over her face, a thin veil of black trying to shield her anguish. She must have been so distraught she didn't even hear him leave the building.

1He took a few more steps and then a door from the other side clanked open. Through two trees, he could see a head of purple hair appear, tied back in two, long tails, a tote bag slung over one shoulder, and another uniform with a blazer. It was spring, but it still had been cold, and the night closing in only made it colder.

When she stepped out, she had been looking as well, but then she saw him and flinched.

They just stared at each other now, one right across from the other, wide eyes blinking against chilled breezes, only distant traffic and the sounds of sobbing to make the situation more awkward than necessary.

Yuuki opened his mouth to say something, but took consideration for the weeping soul between them, and instead motioned with his hand to her, to himself, and to a space in front of the weeping figure.

When he looked back, she had been gaping at the sight of him, but once she registered this gesture of action, her mouth closed and she returned with a definitive nod.

They each took their paces slowly, not wanting to sneak up on her, but not wanting to spook her either.

When he was close enough, he figured this the best time to make their presence known.

"Ko—"

Her shoulders lurched up and her worn face shuddered at him.

"Kotonoha-san…"

"Oh, Yuuki…" she breathed, wiping despaired eyes and sniffling.

He remembered she had insisted before that he refer to her this way, since they were friends now, but he still kept the 'san' respectfully, for his own comfort.

She stopped crying and continued to wipe her face while he and Roka stepped in front of her. Yuuki took a pocket square out of his coat and handed it to Kotonoha.

"Thank you…"

"Why are you crying, Koto-chan?" Roka asked.

Kotonoha lifted her head and stared at Roka a moment before looking around disjointedly and sniffling more, "It's nothing you two should be worried about…"

"That's nonsense," Yuuki spouted.

"Why?" Roka asked.

She didn't answer right off, and simply let her hands land in her lap and stared at them.

"Eiichi and I had…well, I guess you could call it a fight…"

"Why? What happened?" Roka asked.

Without needing any signals to do this, they each took a seat on either side of her.

"He…" she heaved another sigh, "He did something really stupid…and I did something almost as stupid…"

"What did he do?" Yuuki asked.

She took a while to speak again, "Like I said, this isn't something you should concern yourselves with. Eiichi's stupid, reckless ambition just got the best of him, that's all…Why are you two still here?"

"I came looking for you guys," Yuuki said, "Eiichi ran off, and Chie and I haven't heard from him since. Why didn't you contact us?"

"I don't know, a lot happened, but Eiichi had good reason to leave. There was an emergency…"

"Then why didn't you tell us?"

"Yuuki, it's hard to explain, but I can tell you everything is fine now…"

"You don't look like everything is fine," Roka said.

Kotonoha wiped her nose and took a long time to ponder what she would say.

"I think Eiichi and I just need some time apart…"

Yuuki didn't like the sound of this. There may have been a time when he would have considered this good news, but he suddenly found himself sharing empathy for both his former rival and former crush. This afternoon, they were sitting next to him looking as close as nature could ever bring two beings together, and now she was sitting here, talking about possibly leaving him. He would not let this happen.

He leaned back and looked at Roka from behind Kotonoha. She noticed him, and her concerned glance curved up to his.

He started, "Kotonoha-san…you and Eiichi have been apart for long enough."

"Was it really that serious?" Roka asked.

Kotonoha looked at Roka again for another prolonged pause, before turning her head down again.

"Roka…Eiichi told me you and he have been talking. He said that he was helping you. Did you two ever do anything besides talk?"

"Huh…like-like what?"

"Please, answer my question…" she didn't sound as weepy anymore.

Yuuki looked at Kotonoha's hands, they were shaking. He managed a look over at Roka, and she was just as confused as him.

"Kotonoha-san, why are you asking Kitsuregawa?"

"Because I need to know…"

"Kotonoha-chan," Roka leaned forward, "I don't know why you're asking, but Eiichi only ever spoke to me about…what he said we spoke about," she almost whispered it to Kotonoha.

Roka meant him, right? It might make sense that she would still want to keep it secret, but he couldn't figure out why Kotonoha was so interested in Roka and Eiichi. Eiichi told him he had been talking to Roka about him, so he thought Kotonoha knew as well, Chie apparently knew. There was something else going on here that he was not picking up on, but he had to mind Kotonoha for the time being.

Yuuki leaned in and tried to add some sense to all the ambiguity, "Kotonoha-san, I thought Eiichi told you everything. He—"

"He has! I mean…" Kotonoha had lifted her head to the sky, and then was weighted down again, speaking in somber notes, "I thought he had…I guess I'm just being too protective again…"

"I think you two need more time together," Roka said. "I don't really know what you and Ashikaga-san are talking about, but I can tell you, Eiichi's been working very hard. I feel bad now for needing to talk to him so much, and I'm sorry. I didn't think I was pulling him away from you, Koto-chan…"

"No, both of you, he did it because he wanted to," she sniffled and wiped. "He loves to help people. He use to say that he didn't like people, but deep down, he loves talking to them. Every time I see him look at someone a certain way, I can tell he just wants to say something that will make their day better. When he gets that way, I feel so much joy…but I think he knows that a lot of people don't want to be helped, and that's what frustrates him the most."

Yuuki did not feel very settled with defending the same person who had poked, prodded and shoved him in every direction he didn't want to go in, but his thoughts had returned to what the end results had been so far. In the past couple days, he had confessed to a girl, and had been kissed by one. It may have not been the way he imaged it, but it wouldn't have happened, had Eiichi not stepped in. He kept his secrets, he pushed him to do better, and everything he said was to prepare him for whatever might happen. He realized now, Eiichi had never been his rival, he had never wanted to be. He had a tough time admitting how right Chie was, but to Yuuki's surprise, Eiichi had become his senpai, and his closest friend.

"I think he's been working too hard," Yuuki said. "When he was helping me, it looked like he kept getting those headaches you mentioned."

Kotonoha looked like she tensed up again.

"Yeah, the last time we talked, he looked tired, kinda' like he was going to fall over," Roka said. "Has he had trouble sleeping?"

"Um…" Kotonoha remained tense, "Yeah…he complains about bouts of insomnia here and there…and there's always those finals, oh yeah…"

Who knew such a level headed guy could have so many problems.

"But I know this Koto-chan…" Roka took her by the hand, attracting her gaze, "When Eiichi was helping me, sometimes all he ever did was talk about you. He said he really wants to hear you play again."

"When he was trying to help me, he was very uneasy about not being with you," she turned her head when Yuuki chimed in. "He thought you were starting to worry about him. And he did his absolute best to make my…um…you know…be as honest as possible…I did some things that created problems for him, but after being with both of you, I realized how much of a pest I had become…I only got in the way…"

He wasn't sure if he should mention this, but he might as well.

"Yuuki…" Kotonoha muttered, "Eiichi told me about that. You were just standing up for what you believed in."

This made him uneasy, did he tell her _everything_?

"Eiichi may have been with us a lot of the time, but at the end of the day, he only wanted to be with you. Everything he ever did was while he was thinking of you," Roka added.

"Well, I wouldn't necessarily say that," she quirked, "But you're right. He has been working too hard, and it's allowed him to become overconfident and reckless…I suppose it's been the same way for me…"

"Don't leave Eiichi, Koto-chan."

" _What_?" Kotonoha's head whipped toward Roka.

"He loves you very much, and I don't know what would happen to him if you left."

"But…but that's not what I was—"

"Eiichi told me if you apologize first, then everything should be fine. If he can't practice what he preaches, then you have nothing to be sorry for," Roka was getting a little fired up.

"But…" her voice lowered, " _He_ apologized first…"

"Then why are you mad at him!?"

"I…"

This took Yuuki back to something that happened a couple days ago. Despite Chie nagging him, Roka had been the first to apologize, likely because of Eiichi's encouragement, but he simply trampled over her advances, driving her to be more impatient. When he had apologized to her the second time, he had spent so much time explaining himself, he didn't look to see what her reaction had been, and before he realized it, she was all over him. Now that he found her, what would her reaction be now?

Kotonoha stood up suddenly, "You're right Roka…I have to forgive him." She turned around and bowed to both of them, "Thank you so much for your kindness. I'll tell him you each send your love and condolences. I'm going straight to him. The school will be closing soon, but…" she looked from one to the other, "I think you two should talk while you're still here."

Yuuki felt his face getting warm and almost stole a glance at Roka, but when he saw her eyes on him, he looked away reflexively. Her face had been kind of red, now that he thought about it. It must have been his imagination, it was getting pretty dark.

"Um…y-yeah…you go on ahead…w-we'll stay here…" she uttered.

When Yuuki looked up to say goodbye to Kotonoha, he could see the upturned line of her mouth in the evening glow, while she looked at each of them.

"I wish you two the best. Thank you again."

When she was gone, Yuuki smoothed the fabric of his slacks, his eyes wandering to the darkening trees, the grass and the orange clouds. They were here now, and despite Eiichi's efforts, in a strange way, Kotonoha had been the one to bring them together. Should he be the first one to speak?

"U-um, I didn't think you'd still be here…I thought you had gone home…" he stammered.

"Y-yeah…I thought you had left too…"

"Why are you still here?"

"Eiichi told me he'd come looking for me, but when he never showed up, it felt odd, so I went looking for him. And then Chie messaged me a little while ago that you guys were searching for us. I thought he forgot all about me. I guess this explains why."

"Yeah, I was there. We were waiting for him to come back with you and Koto, but he never showed, so Chie decided to look for you…" and then he just remembered, and took out his cell phone.

While tapping away, he noticed Roka was very quiet and looked up to see her half opened eyes side glancing at him with a perturbed expression.

"I'm sorry, I'm not doing that again, it's just Chie wanted me to notify her if I found either of you."

Roka gave a little smile and nodded, "Okay…"

After putting his phone away, he found himself again, tightly nestled in the uncomfortable arms of awkward silence. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her subtly rubbing her hands and knees together.

Maybe it was some kind of coping mechanism, or nervous habit, but the longer he watched, he could feel his face getting warm again.

"So…you were looking for Koto-chan…" she asked.

"U-uh…well I guess…"

She stopped.

"I was supposed to find any one of you…but actually…I was looking for you…"

He turned and could see her hands and knees still together, motionless, but her face looking right back at him.

"I have questions…" he uttered.

She looked back at her hands and he thought he saw her gulp.

"I-I'm sorry again, about earlier," she said.

"Huh!? W-Why?" he looked.

She glanced at him and then back to her hands, "You were in the middle of talking. Sorry, for grabbing you like that..."

It had certainly been the most intense experience he had ever had with a girl, even more than when he first saw her changing, though that had been a close second, especially with his slip up causing him to see another delicate part of her.

During his apology, he could only remember looking at his shoes while talking. It had happened so fast, he completely forgot what he had been saying. Suddenly a pair of surprisingly supple hands had grabbed him by the cheeks, wrenched his face up, and then a closeup of Roka's face had only magnified itself in his glasses. He could remember something small and soft against his lips, and after that, everything went blank.

"That…that's okay…"

"It's _what_?" her broad, perplexed eyes locked on his, her hands parted into petrified, nervous claws.

"It felt…good…"

"O-o-oh, it did?" the nervous rubbing started again and he thought he couldn't take it anymore.

He didn't even realize he was doing it until he felt the subtle motion of his hands slowly scooting himself closer to her. He hoped she could not hear him breathing as much as he could, his chest was pounding so hard, he thought he saw his shirt and coat moving in the dimness. He could feel the concussions from his shoulders, all the way down to the tips of his fingers and toes. He was short of breath and in pain, but he didn't want it to go away.

"I…want to try it again…"

" _Oh-oh, y-you do_?" Roka froze.

Keeping his hands on his knees, he turned to her, and when she noticed, she stopped and looked at him. Then she parted her hands and turned all the way, resting one leg on the bench, staring intensely back at him, shoulders hunched forward, eyes wide, her lips in a tiny, straight, nervous line.

He wondered if he looked as scared as she did, not wanting to look away, not wanting to blink.

"You go first…" she said.

"What do you mean!?"

"I went first last time, you go this time…"

" _Ah—_ " he looked sideways and then stared back at her, taking a deep breath as his chest seized with a burning sensation, "Okay…"

He scooted closer, her knee touched his hip, and as he did, she closed her eyes, reminding him to do the same.

When they touched, she felt just like the last time, only it had been so quick. He couldn't make up his mind which way had felt more intense. To him, they were the same.

He couldn't figure out what he should do next, and then he felt her hand smooth the ridge of his jaw and lay itself on his neck. Sensitive convulsions shot through all of his nerves. He raised his hand rigidly and placed it on her side. He didn't know how far was not far enough or too far. She scooted closer, her leg resting down and her hip pressing up against his. Her other hand slipped into his, the fingers intertwining and squeezing tight. She pressed closer, deeper, and he could feel something smooth and wet. Was that her tongue!? Between their lips, she released a little sound, and he thought he might lose his mind.

One of his many fascinations had been that it was like he knew where every part of her was without opening his eyes. She could be very gentle, despite her forward nature. Every sensation he received felt sensitive, and she seemed to feel the same way.

And then he realized something else… _he wasn't breathing!_

Their lips sucked and parted, and he found himself wishing he could have held on longer.

"Sorry…" he panted, "I…"

"No, it's okay…"

He suddenly noticed that while looking down, his eyes had happily fixed themselves on her chest, but when he hastily looked up at her, he saw that it and the little smile on her face were both heaving lusty intakes of air. Did she forget too?

"That was… _amazing_ ," he breathed.

"Yeah…" she smiled.

Somehow, things had changed in their surroundings. Her face had been shadowed over and there was a white glow from behind them. Sometime after they started, the fluorescent lamps in the courtyard had been turned on.

She noticed them too, "I guess we should go now…" sounding a little sad.

He saw this as an opportunity, and squeezed her hand in his, conjuring another contented smile.

"So, we're…"

"Yes," she nodded.

Then the lights reminded him of something.

"I haven't heard back from Chie yet," he said to her, not really bothering to check his phone. "It's been…how long has it been?"

"I don't know, I wasn't keeping track," he couldn't tell if she intended this as a complement, but it certainly felt like one. "I don't know how much longer we have," she looked up at the sky as stars were just beginning to form, and then back to him, "but, do you want to try again, just a little…"

"Okay, but this time, let's try breathing through the nose."

She smiled, "Okay, but…" and reached out.

 _-Skimming the Fractured Surfaces to a Place of Endless Light by Kaki King-_

The white fluorescence nearly consumed his entire vision as his glasses were removed. Her face and hair became a dark blur against a celestial backdrop. Time drew itself out in long, passionate silence, and as he looked back at her silhouette, he could gradually feel her breathing get heavier.

"I-It's not that I don't like you with them…I just wanted to try it this way…"

"No, it's fine…" he blinked.

A motioning shadow, and he felt her cool hand touch his face, caressing it, "You can't see that well without them, can you…"

"No…I'm farsighted, so I can't see when you're this close, but at night I'm…I'm blind as a bat…"

She was so curious about him, only making his curiosities run wild.

Her fingers loosed themselves from his other hand and took it. She moved it all the way up to what he was pretty sure was her chest, because he could feel her heart pounding. And then he could feel it pushing gently forward, making his arm retract, as she closed in on him for more. He could feel her warm breath on his lips.

An erratic alarm from his chest burst through the closing space between them, likely not his own heartbeat, and breached their joyous tension. All recognition of worldly troubles dulcetly faded back into their thoughts.

" _Uh_ …" Roka startled.

" _Uh-um_ , I should probably get that."

"Y-yeah…" she withdrew.

Without thinking, Yuuki found the pocket that contained his cell phone and fished it out. Upon flipping it open, he realized a missing element that had been necessary for him to continue his goals, which seemed so insignificant at this specific point in time.

"Um—"

A giggle from Roka cut him off, "Here," and he could feel the frames of his glasses being gently placed into his hand.

"Thank you…" he smiled to his doting, blurry angel, and placed them on his face.

However, upon regaining his sight, the startling coincidence of the message that displayed on his screen was not at all wasted on him.

'I see yooooou ^_^'

" _WAH!_ " Yuuki fumbled his phone and nearly dropped it.

"What!? What is it?"

"Um…nothing. Chie says she'll be here in a few…"

* * *

Kotonoha popped open the door to her limo and thanked her driver before closing it. Per her request, the limo drove off and down the neighborhood street.

Her family's driver was a kind man. Whenever she did not have company, they would talk. And at times, he gave very wealthy advice. It had been this way ever since she started middle school.

'Kuzoka-san isn't with you…' a questioning statement while he had been looking through his review at her. 'As late as it is, I assumed it might be the two of you.'

'No…we're having some trouble…'

'Ah, it happens, part of life. But…I'm sure I don't need to tell you, you picked a good one there. Kuzoka-san, he's got it together. It's not regular practice for a high school student to converse so lively with a limo driver.'

She allowed a little smirk to the face in the rear view mirror before blinking somberly out the window.

'You don't have to take my word for it Katsura-san, but you two having trouble only shows that you're growing. It will bring you closer, even if you fight. My wife and I, we argue about the pettiest things sometimes, but we're still here, seventeen years and counting. It doesn't have to be like that, but the arguing somehow brings us closer.'

After they pulled up in front of the Kuzoka residence, Kotonoha had opened the door when he spoke again.

'Good luck Katsura-san, I hope to be driving the two of you again soon.'

'Thank you Amaya-san.'

'I don't suppose you'll want me to come back.'

'No, I'm here to stay. I'll come up with something to tell mother. I don't want you risking your job because of me.'

'I'm sure she'll understand. You have your mother's kindness, and I've spoken with her plenty of times in here as well. She's taken a fond liking to Kuzoka-san. Have a good night Katsura-san.'

Pacing up to the front door, she had all kinds of things going through her head on what might transpire, but one thing was certain, before anything else was said, she would apologize.

She approached the front door, and knocked. The face that greeted her was not quite who she expected, but it did make her feel more welcome.

"Koto-chan, please come in…" Torio opened the door wider.

"Hey Torio…"

She kicked her shoes off and followed him into the living room. The lights were off, with only a fluorescent glow from the kitchen.

"I trust you're here to talk to him," sounding more somber, but it seemed nothing could stifle that inner humor and joy that was Torio.

"Where is he?"

"Take a wild guess," a light smile, with eyes moving toward the stairs. "When he got back, he didn't say anything, he just went straight up. He's probably hungry too."

She nodded and clasped her hands together, looking at the floor.

"Can you tell me what happened?" he asked.

How could she? She only knew so much, and what she had done to his brother left her feeling reluctant and remorseful to him as well, even if Torio was the type to forgive her on the spot.

"I can tell you later, but first I want to see if he will listen to me."

"Oh, I'm sure he will," Torio walked over to one of the kitchen overlook chairs and grabbed his coat off it, "I don't think it matters how mad he gets with you or himself, he'll listen if it's you talking."

"I only hope…"

"He may not look like he is, but he will be. When is he not, right?"

Little smiles peaked out between the two.

He continued, "It may get ugly, but you'll be fine."

"Where are you going?" she asked as he stepped past her, back into the hall.

"I'm going to see if a certain Ashikaga Chie will join me for a late evening stroll."

"But do you know where she lives? And isn't it a Monday? Would you like her number?"

"Got it covered," he patted the pocket containing his cell.

"How did…"

"We managed to sneak a conversation when you two weren't around."

A subtle intake of air and she could only manage a delighted smile under her present turmoil.

"And I'm not too worried about it being a Monday," he stepped to the door, "If she's too busy for me, she'll say so."

Kotonoha doubted this. Chie had some interesting things to say to her about Torio through text, that she didn't want Eiichi to hear.

"I wish you luck," she said.

"You two have the house, take as long as you need."

"Thank you Torio…"

With a nod to her, the door closed, and it was her time.

The dark, narrow stairway hollowly attempted to repel her and defend its lone isolate, in its silent dwelling. A different kind of despair and hate, not like what she had known within herself, lingered up there. When she could not control her own faults, she wondered if she would even be able to manage his.

She started on her way, her steps sounding much too loud to her.

2As she got closer to the top, after the silence, the first thing she could hear was music. The low sound of one guitar and the delicate thumping of a muddled drum beat reverberated through the walls.

She made it to the top of the stairs, and started down the hall. The music became more vivid.

His door was shut of course, and she walked up to it. Curled fingers tapped twice against the gloss painted front.

There was nothing at first, and she wondered if he heard. Then his voice sounded from inside, "I don't really want to be bothered right now…"

Not heeding this, she turned the knob and pushed the door forward.

- _Your words to me just a whisper, Your face is so unclear_ -

The only light visible was from the nightstand next to his bed, everything else shadowed over in a comforting warmth for insecurity. His bed sat in the far corner of the room. He was there now, his back propped in the corner.

The rough, somber voice continued to sing through the speakers on his dresser.

- _I try to pay attention, Your words just disappear_ -

A half empty bottle of amber liquid sat on the nightstand. Eiichi's right knee had been propped up with one hand rested on it, a whiskey glass with more of the same dangling between hapless fingers above the sheets. And in his left hand, rested against his thigh, an unopened pack of cigarettes, the plastic wrapping reflected in the lamplight.

She had seen him collapse in the fits of a seizure, she had seen him half paralyzed on a couch, but for all the time that they had known each other, she knew now, that she was seeing him at his weakest.

- _'Cause it's always raining in my head…Forget all the things I should have said_ -

When she entered, he must have known she was outside the door, because he didn't raise his head, which hung and maintained its hard stare on the pack. His answer had already been a clue to what she was walking in to, not telling her to leave, but withholding permission to see him. He may have known as soon as she set foot in the house.

She smoothed out her thoughts as best she could, but her fear had been replaced by sadness.

"So should I expect this from you every time we have an argument?" she asked, fighting to regain her sternness.

He tossed the pack onto the sheets, looking away from it.

She stood, waiting for her answer.

"You call that an argument?" he murmured.

"I call it a problem."

He took a long drink from his glass before setting it down on the nightstand. She reached over and didn't turn the music off, but down, then stepped closer to the bed.

"I came to say what I'm going to say, and I don't care if you know or not, I'm going to say it, and I want you to hear it."

Lazily, his head lifted up and those piercing eyes of his shadowed over in a bloodshot leer that could read every corner of her. They looked just as sunken and tired as Roka and Yuuki said they were. They may have only seen him suffering, not knowing he was under the weight of their troubles, but she could see now, it had been going on for too long. It was a wonder he had still been moving around. How could she have let it get this bad?

"I am sorry…you came to tell me the truth and I only acted rashly. I am sorry…you tried to apologize, and I threw it back in your face. You pushed yourself too far, and I didn't see that."

He cast his weary eyes at the sheets, his words were mere, slurred whispers, "I'm never helping another person again…"

"Okay."

"And that's your answer?" his head nodded, and she couldn't tell if it was from exhaustion or drunkenness.

"If you want to throw a tantrum because things didn't go your way, fine, I'll be with you for it. If you don't want to help people anymore, that is your choice, and this is mine."

He felt he deserved her scorn, and now he was going to fight her every step of the way. Like him, she only wanted the best for his sake.

She looked down at the glass and bottle on the nightstand. The label read Abhainn Dubh 12 year old single malt.

He didn't say anything when she picked up the glass.

Though it had just left his hand, it felt cool to the touch. There was just enough for two fingers worth. The alcohol swished around, creating transparent little trickles against the glass. She brought it to her nose and the burning fumes tickled her nostrils with a heavy scent of smoke.

She didn't know where he got the bottle. He must have had it hidden in anticipation for a happier time.

She looked at him, the glass still close to her face, "But I'll say this, you're better off helping people. You're good at it, and it makes me happy to see you do it, because it makes you happy."

She lowered it and tipped her head back, letting it all roll between her lips. It tickled her teeth and tongue, but she couldn't taste anything until she gulped it down. The smoke, with mild, sickly sweet undertones, filled her mouth and nostrils. It burned in her stomach and she was suddenly feeling a little warm in the face and throat, and had to force a cough.

She set the empty glass back down and looked into his gaping, wide eyed bewilderment.

"So how did it happen…" she asked.

He blinked and his head jutted away, "Don't, don't make me do that…"

"Tell me."

"No!"

" _Listen_ ," she leaned in, "you are going to tell me, because if you don't, I'm going to do my best to focus really hard on every fantasy involving me and another guy until you're just a nervous, jealous ball of contempt!"

He sat up, "So what!? You think I don't know what I put you through!? You want to hear every little detail now!? Cause you're not gonna' like it!"

"If that's what it takes…it's time for you to help yourself…"

"It…" he huffed and placed his mouth on his fist.

"Did you like it?"

"What do you think!?" he turned.

She crossed her arms. She didn't need to be an emotion reader to know how guilty he felt, the anguish, the anger of allowing himself to become so vulnerable.

"I…" he braced himself, "I found her outside. She was really broken up, and I just thought…I just thought she needed someone to show her they cared…I thought, who better than me? I had ignored her for so long, and I felt awful. I felt that I was the cause of her pain, which caused what happened to you, so I also felt responsible…and I wanted to do everything I could to make it right…all I did…" he shuddered then shook his head.

"Go on…"

He looked at her hard, "I gave her a hug, and let her cry it out, that's all…because that's what she needed. She was alone, and desperate, and I walked right into it."

"And so if you see someone in that state, you're never going to do it again?"

He looked away with vehemence.

"Then how will you help them, if they need that connection?"

He leaned back and flexed the hand on his knee, still keeping his eyes from her.

"Why won't you stand up for yourself? You could have been a little more specific with what happened."

He leaned forward again, "It still happened! I still screwed up!"

" _You didn't do anything wrong! Otome forced herself on you!_ "

" _And I gave her a big window to do it! Knowing what she was capable of!_ "

" _She just wanted it more than you! Are you telling me you can see into the future now!?_ "

He stopped and stared at her, panting, "I could have let go…"

She stared right back, "The fact that it bothers you so much is proof enough that you still love me. You said that she was hurt and you were right. I should have believed you, because she was hurt enough to try a desperate move like that. If she won't bother us anymore, I believe that too. You didn't let go because you knew she needed it. You did what you knew was right. If we both could change what happened, we would, so why, _why_ won't you forgive yourself?"

Still looking at her, she saw his hand move to an area on his abdomen and smooth over it, "Because I'm afraid I'm turning into someone I don't want to be…"

Another clue as to why he had been working himself into the ground. He had become very self-conscious of that part of him, she noticed it every time they made love.

She shuddered, "What Otome said about you…how often have you been hearing that?"

Not answering again, his eyes wandered away.

He could have been hearing it often enough in his own head. He acted like he didn't care about what others said, but he had let this get to him. How could she have let herself doubt him? She probably wound up feeding his own doubts. It was bullshit, she knew he had a good nature, she knew he wanted to do his best, he should never feel the need to force himself for others, just to prove to himself that this wasn't true.

"That's insanity, and you're a fool if you believe it," but he would always be her fool.

After simmering down, she grasped the pack off his bed. It was coated in earthy colors, a tan base with a deep brown border, a bird with brown-red and black feathers printed in flight, with the Sparrow Natural 100's label across the front, the only kind she ever saw him smoke.

She looked at him, "Do you want one?"

He glanced at the pack nervously and looked away.

"It won't change things. I know I made indications before that I didn't like that you were smoking, but I never told you to quit. You made that decision on your own. I thought you did it for yourself, but it turns out you only did it for me. It didn't change things then, and it won't change them now." She paused, "You know…even though it bothered me, there was something pleasant about it."

He looked about tiredly, "Why are you telling me this?"

"Stop asking questions you already know the answers to," she turned the pack over in her hand, "If you want one, I will open this for you."

He looked at the pack, and smoothed his fingers over his mouth, "I do…"

"But you won't take one…"

Desire grew within his gaze, "No…I don't want to make you do that…"

"Okay…" she set the pack down next to his glass.

"If you're going to stay, I'll take the couch…you can have the bed…" he started to get up.

She couldn't believe what she was hearing, "Where is your faith? Why are ignoring the answer when it's right in front of you? Do you think I came here just to be a thorn in your side? Do you feel that awful, that unworthy that you won't come near me anymore? You made a mistake. Guess what, you're going to make more of them, I am too, and we're going to get angry with each other, and we're going to fight! You want to know why!? Because that's what happens in a healthy relationship!"

She felt like she was talking down to him, she just wanted him to snap out of it, she just wanted him, but she had to remember his own words. All things worth waiting for take time.

She pointed to the night stand, "If drinking and smoking a little is how you cope, fine, but I don't want to see you sitting in the dark, feeling sorry for yourself anymore. It hurts too much, and that's not the Eiichi I know."

He had frozen in place, still bewildered.

She moved forward and placed one stockinged knee on the bed. Her hands pressed into the sheets and she crawled right up to him, her face close to his.

She touched the t-shirt under his button up and lifted it, revealing the whitish, mangled line underneath. His hands shook and moved away from her.

His eyes were frightened, but she stared into them anyways, "You didn't receive this because of your mistakes…You earned it protecting someone…You will never become that person you're so afraid of. It's impossible…"

Smoothing a benevolent hand over it, she leaned down, and placed a kiss. It was warm and she felt him shiver.

Looking back into his tired eyes, she smoothed one knee next to his hip and hooked her other over him so she sat on both, and gently placed her hips in his lap, her hands laid on his chest.

"What're you doing?"

He should really stop asking stupid questions.

"I'm forgiving you…" she leaned forward, one hand pawed while the other brushed his neck.

"Again…"

"Yes…"

1 "Neanderthal" by Kaki King

2 "Epiphany" by Staind


	13. Chapter 13 An Oblique Passing

**Chapter 13: An Oblique Passing**

The neighboring homes of Eiichi's street steadily eased themselves beyond the sides of his peripheral vision as he whipped forward at a steady jog, tote bag in hand. Thunderheads drifted close to the horizon in the distance, and the spring afternoon sun glared down through cool breezes. It had been a great Saturday.

Yesterday, everyone had met on the roof for lunch where Kotonoha proposed plans for a dinner party that weekend. Roka, Chie and Yuuki were all present and would be in attendance as well for the dinner, as shown by their unanimous decision in favor of the idea. Eiichi thought it was a little early to be scheduling a party so close to finals week, but Kotonoha assured him it would be a menial gathering in honor of their friends and that the real events wouldn't take place until after graduation.

The party would be held at Eiichi and Torio's house, and Torio had been ecstatic, hearing the news that Chie would be there. Kotonoha had been well aware this party would not be equivalent to the posh get-togethers she was accustomed to, but she still wanted to prepare an elegant enough meal for their special guests. She looked forward to it being practice in her culinary efforts and skills as a hostess.

It had been planned for this evening at six. However, after classes let out, he and Kotonoha met up and she had proposed a new route she discovered to Eiichi's house that she figured might be faster. He had severe doubts about this, and boasted that he knew all the routes in and out of his neighborhood like the back of his hand. This of course, sparked a spirit of competition between the two and they agreed on a race. Eiichi would take his original route while Kotonoha would take her proposed route.

Eiichi took three victorious clomps up to his front door, panting and sweating a little under his coat. He inserted the key to his door, confident Kotonoha would be knocking in another ten minutes and eating her words.

He shut the door behind him and could smell something cooking as well as hear someone busy in the kitchen.

"I win!" Kotonoha announced with simplicity.

"What the…" Eiichi kicked his shoes off and called back, "With time to spare apparently," he stepped into the living room and in front of the overlook.

There she was, apron over her uniform, kitchen knife in hand and not a visible note of exhaustion, while he stood panting with hands in his pockets.

"Well fuck me sideways…"

"Don't give me any ideas," seeing his state, she waved the knife, "Cheaters never prosper. A casual walk was the agreement."

"I just wanted to see how fast 'fast' really was. Apparently fast enough."

"Mhm, maybe you should use that ability of yours less and use your brain more. I'll show you the route tomorrow. Well Hun, as we agreed, the loser has to do whatever the winner wishes."

Damn, and he had been really looking forward to the cat ears, collar and maid outfit combo.

"Alright, so what do I owe you?" he shrugged.

Kotonoha was possibly the nicest girl that Eiichi ever had the pleasure of knowing, but in matters like this, she could be ruthless.

"Hmm…" she placed the tip of the blade close to her lips and tapped it a few times, giving him a once over, "Next time you have to wear ears…and you're taking me to a specialty shop, so you get to pick what kind…"

Okay, not so bad.

"…my idea…" he grumbled.

"I'm sorry sweetie, did you say something?"

"I said that was my idea…" with a defeated rolling of the eyes.

"Okay then, with a collar and leash…you must call me 'Master Koto', and…" she sighed, whimsically looking at the ceiling, "and because you cheated, I have something in mind that involves leather restraints, a blindfold, and a few _special_ items you don't need to know about…" she rested the knife against her deviant, smiling lips.

"You're gonna' wear me out, aren't you…" allowing some of that fear to show.

"Mhm…" she nodded.

He took a breath, "Well…a bet's a bet. Anything for you, 'Master'…"

Her shoulders scrunched as she blushed and smiled at this.

Eiichi stepped forward, on his way into the kitchen to get a beer.

"Dear, would you turn the heat down to five on that burner for me?" she motioned with her head to the stove.

"Yes Master," he poked and she let out a poorly concealed giggle.

He stepped around the counter.

She must have been burning the candle at both ends with her little operation, there was something in the oven besides the fish she was cutting up, and it smelled great; a very warm, savory smell, but he couldn't pick out if it was beef or pork. She must have a multi course meal in mind.

On the stove there was a skillet on the front, right burner with a thin layer of oil in it, and next to the stove, minced herbs with sliced caps and onions. He proceeded with turning the dial.

"You're asking me to help you?" feeling inapt at this and peering at the back of her head.

Not only that, when she had called him 'hun', he thought of it as a minor addition to his punishment for cheating. Just an annoying sprinkle of frowardness he wasn't use to from her, but the 'dear' sounded really out of place. Maybe she was still rubbing it in, though it sounded more genuine than he would have liked.

"Well, I thought maybe it would be time for you to help out a little, until Torio gets home. This is going to be a big dinner anyways, so I want to make sure everything comes together nicely," she proceeded with working on the fish.

Eiichi leaned over the waste basket. It must have been the really fresh kind, like just caught that day, she was still busy with the gutting and filleting. It looked like she had been cutting beef or something as well, there was a rather colorful mix in there.

"Roka and Yuuki called earlier. They were really concerned with how to dress. I suppose I made it sound more elegant than I mean to."

"That's alright…" he smoothed up behind her, and with his hands on her shoulders, he closed his eyes and nuzzled his head next to hers.

She returned with a raising of the shoulder, nuzzling back.

He squeezed and whispered, "You just can't help it, Master…"

She giggled as he planted a kiss on her cheek, and then he was off to the fridge to grab his beer.

"I assured them, there's no need for fuss, we're all friends and it's really more casual. Oh yeah, sweetheart, while you're in there, could you check if we have chives?"

Okay, this had to stop sometime, it was getting to be a turnoff. Why couldn't they just stick with the originals? She was Koto and he was…whatever she wanted to call him. Anything but these passé, cheesy little pet names. Maybe it was some quirky phase she was going through, but if not, he would have to mention that he wasn't crazy about it, before he started getting used to it. Maybe it would hurt her feelings, and he might have to dote on her for a while, but she'd understand.

He recovered from leaning on the fridge handle and gave it a tug.

1Gaping, fish like eyes stared back at him from a vacant face behind saran wrap. A disjointed mouth parted with thick trickling of dry blood over purple lips and ashen skin. The undeserving platform of its rest was one of Torio's dinner plates with vine decals on the rims, a still pool of blood covering its base. The saran wrap stretched over the crown of black hair, all the way down to where it had been tucked under the edges.

He thought he remembered seeing something like this in a movie, and the head would start talking in an giddy, out of place tone right about now, 'Hey there Kuzoka! Katsura! Wonder where Sekai is. Probably feeling a little light headed and couldn't make it. Oh well, looks like the gang's all here! Hey, Katsura's cooking sure has improved, something smells good!'

Thankfully it didn't. He fought to control his shallow breathing, and somehow managed to find his faltered bearings.

"Honeybun, you know better than to leave the fridge door open."

He whipped around.

Kotonoha was still at the counter, knife in hand and steadily at work. How could he have missed it before? There was more blood than normal for working with fish bought from the market. It was coated and dried on her hands, on the apron and the blade.

He lowered his vision. What he thought had been fish, was a forearm, cut and disconnected right at the elbow joint. The hairless, bottom end flesh had be dissected all the way up to the wrist and peeled to the sides, wide spread wings of skin curved up in a narrow V, exposing wet, red muscle tissue and bone.

Kotonoha continued, but didn't need the knife to separate one of the tendons. "These things are too stringy, you have to get rid of them first, they're really hard to chew…"

She tossed the flappy, glistening ligament into the waste basket.

"Stick with just muscle, that's what Torio always tells me," she shook the knife absently before getting back to it.

"Koto…"

She looked, "Oh, I'm sorry dear, it's really a terrible thing. He spent his last days feeling very stressed and didn't work out much, so I'm sorry if it won't be as tender as you like. I'll try soaking it in wine for a bit and that should loosen it up. What would you like for seasoning?" she smiled at him.

This wasn't happening, this could not be happening, he was just imagining it.

He shut his eyes tight and opened them. The hand on the counter might as well have waved at him.

"Oh shoot!"

Eiichi flinched as Kotonoha's fists padded on the counter, the knife still in one.

She shook her head as if scolding the surgical display, "I forgot, this is his right hand, he probably used this the most. It's still sanitary, but it would be in poor taste if everyone knew. I know I wouldn't enjoy it. I should have thrown it out a long time ago. That's me, forgetting until the last minute…"

She grabbed the cleaver from the knife block.

' _It will do_ … _whatever I wish_ …'

One dainty hand held the open forearm in place while the other raised and fell with methodical precision.

' _It is mine_ …'

The blade clapped against the cutting board and the hand popped off at the joint, off white cartilage with bone marrow slipping out. She picked it up by the thumb with two fingers, gingerly stepping over and dropping it into the waste basket.

"Not that edible anyways," she stepped over to the sink to wash her hands. "Hun, could you call everyone and tell them dinner will be a little late? The main course still needs a few more hours, I'm waiting for Torio to get back so he can help. Oh, and could you go out and pick up a few things, we need more beverages and horderves. I left the list on the refrigerator for you."

He loved her with all his heart, but she was sick, she needed help.

Keeping his eyes on her, he backed slowly out of the kitchen. When he was clear, he made a running dash for the front door, wondering if his heavy feet would be able to carry him fast enough. He had to find Torio and tell him.

He could still hear her voice from the kitchen, "Hun?"

He flattened himself against the door, remembering the inconvenience that he had to pull on it to get out. He twisted the knob and looked back, she had not followed him. He flung the door open and bolted out into the night.

* * *

He made it to the street much faster than expected. It was crazy how fast he got there, like his tiny front yard and the sidewalk had not been there, and his front door sat right at the edge of an empty street.

He stopped running and looked down. This wasn't his street. He wasn't even in his neighborhood. He looked up and saw the neighbor's houses had been replaced with a park. He turned around. His house had disappeared, replaced with a row of higher quality houses.

Where was he?

" _Help me!_ " a scream erupted up the road from him.

In a river of black pavement and orange light, he could see a dark figure hunched over something, lengthy shadows stretching from the lamplight.

" _Somebody help me, please!_ " he knew that voice.

He sprinted over to it, and the closer he got, the more familiar things became.

It was a girl, hunched over a body lying in the street. The body, he knew who it was.

A pink parka and black, shoulder length hair, crowned over with a quirky antennae, spread out on the cold pavement, a dark pool beneath it, caking into the strands. A pale face, that once knew the humorous pleasures of joy and friendship, now motionless, staring back with empty eyes and breathless lips.

A painted knife lay in the street nearby.

The girl sitting on her trembled, her long black hair draped over her coat and shielded her face, clouds of mist wafted between her locks with wet, strained breathing. Hands shaking with the cold, she reached forward and touched the cold face, shuddering as she ran her fingers around its eyes and cheek.

"Sekai…" was her broken whisper.

She released a sob that strained into a wretch, before whimpering while struggling to get up. She backed away and turned to another object that he had not noticed before.

On the sidewalk behind her, lay another motionless mass. A young man with black flecked hair, his head facing up, vacant blue eyes to the stars above. No mist escaped between his lips, a lifeless hand over a rip behind the opening of his coat. A broad stain of blood had spread itself all the way from his front, flowing down his side where it collected underneath him on the sidewalk.

When she scooped him up, his head hung limp over her arm, his hand falling off his broken body, not bothering to embrace her, no longer needing the protection and reassurance of her love.

"Eiichi… _no, no, oh God_ …" her voice spiraled out of control. She cradled his head and nestled it with hers, placing her forehead on his, "Please come back…please come back…"

She rocked, the empty shell in her arms.

"Koto…" he was right here. Could she see that was not him?

He could touch her, if he could just touch her.

"Koto…"

He reached out…

* * *

"Koto…"

It was dark. He struggled, he couldn't see her anymore, where was she?

He reached, but there was nothing for him to grasp.

"Koto…"

Suddenly, he felt like he was being lifted up, shadows of the past floated by.

The vision had escaped him, but he could still remember. Where had it gone?

He wasn't being lifted up, he was being lifted out. Something was shaking him, and he could feel pain again.

" _Eiichi_ …"

An oblique passing, he realized he was lying on his left shoulder, he could feel pressure. The one pointing up was the one being shaken.

It was still dark, "Koto…"

The smooth motions continued, he could feel his head being moved too. He recognized the sensation. It was worry, and fear, from a mind he knew better than any.

He could feel his pillow underneath his ear, the blanket and sheets over his bareness. His eyes flitted open and he found himself staring upon the rest of his pillow, the empty space next to where he slept. The shaking stopped.

"Eiichi?"

He shifted his head and looked up.

" _AH!_ " his hand shot forward to protect himself, his back hit against the wall next to his bed.

Sparkling clouds of silvery blues and yellows faded from his stressed vision, the face that stared at him with perplexed worry was not what it had been a moment ago.

Kotonoha knelt on the bed with one knee, the other foot on the floor for support, one hand clutching the covers over her chest while the other reached out to him, now retracting, slowly.

There was a dim, blue light showing through the blinds of his window, revealing the pale emerging shades, just before dawn.

His breathing hissed in short bursts and he tried to calm himself.

"Oh God, I'm so sorry Koto…" a hand to his face, "I'm so sorry…"

"You just had a nightmare Eiichi…" she smoothed over to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You're burning up…"

"I didn't mean to…"

"You…you kept saying my name in your sleep…and something about a saw…"

He hadn't noticed it before, but her voice was very raspy. He looked up and saw glossy trails running from the corners of her eyes.

"You've been crying…" he reached.

Her eyes lowered as she leaned in to his hand. She scooted closer to him, and he took her in his arms so she was seated between his legs as he cradled her, a hand to his chest, her hair nuzzling against his cheek. He wanted to just wrap her up tight and stay this way, keeping each other in a warm, safe place.

She whispered to him, as if someone was listening, even now, "Sometimes…I still see her face…" she trembled, and he held her tighter, "between my hands…and I can't…"

His eyes stung as she shook in his embrace, the tears rolled all the way down to her hair.

He had noticed this in her and was scared of when this day would come. It had been bothering her just as his own memories were. Sometimes when she saw him, she was just grateful he was vertical and breathing.

"I dream that I lose you…that I was not fast enough…and I don't know what to do…"

He didn't answer with some lengthy, insightful explanation about post-traumatic stress symptoms and the pathological effects of killing a friend. He just held her, rocking her gently like she did him, and tried to absorb every painful ounce of that fear as he could.

"I know…I was there…"

"You were?" she didn't lift her head.

"Yes…" he smoothed her shoulder, "Remember that time on the roof, when I first showed you?"

He felt her head nod against him.

"I think it works the same way with dreams…you held me, and I reached out to you…"

She clung to him as tight as she could, bracing through a silent wave. He could feel her tears against his skin.

"I'm right here, I'm not going anywhere…"

"I can't hide anything from you, can I?" she joked through a sob.

He kissed her on the head, "I'm sorry…"

"No…" she sniffled, "if anything happens, I won't have to tell you about it. I'm worried about you though. How will you dream if I'm always next to you?"

What he remembered of his own recollection made him shiver, "For now, I'd rather have your dreams…"

They held each other close in the dawning light, both wanting to sleep just as they were, in each other's comfort.

"I'll give Dr. Andrews a call, I haven't talked with him in a few years," he said.

"Your neurologist?"

"Yes, he would want to know about this, he can help us. Because it involves my ability, he'd want to know about what I've told you, and everything that happened."

"Oh Eiichi…"

Holding her close, he rocked, stroking her arm, "It's gonna' be okay…we're gonna' be fine…"

"Why were you so frightened…of me…"

He squeezed her arm and hissed a breath in through his cold nostrils.

"My dream is of losing you too…" he whispered back, "but in a different way…"

He held his pause for a long time, and she sensed that he did not want to continue. She stroked his chest more, urging him on.

"I will always love you…always…" she said.

He breathed, feeling her head lift against his chest, "Before I tell you, I want you to know…that I know you would never harm another human being, unless you had a good reason. Kotonoha, you are everything to me. You are strong, but I loved you even when you were at your weakest. I also want you to know, that even after what I saw, I still loved you." He gently nuzzled his cheek against her hair and closed his eyes, "Remember when I had my seizure…"

 **AN:** I know it's only August, but Happy Halloween guys! Sláinte! The next chapter may be up a little earlier than next Wednesday.

1 "Brain Damage" by Pink Floyd - "The lunatic is in my head, hhhuhuhuhuhu... _hhhhHUHUHAHAHAHA_..."


	14. Chapter 14 Said the Fox to the Wolf

**Chapter 14: Said the Fox to the Wolf**

When Otome woke up that Tuesday morning, she went straight into her bathroom to look at her face in the mirror. Peering at her dismal and withered complexion, she checked the bags under her eyes.

She couldn't really tell how much sleep she had gotten the night before. If she did sleep, she didn't remember it, but her best guess had been less than an hour's worth of mere dosing. The rest of the night had been painful tossing and turning, with hundreds of worries and thoughts going through her head at once. Images flashed through her mind's eye of her mother's scornful grimace, the judgmental looks of students while she was being led through the hall with one arm in the firm grip of a uniform, and a dismal courtroom, the most prominent among the others. She pondered with shut eyes why Eiichi had approached her, how she had ruined it, what she had done to him and Kotonoha, what Eiichi thought of her now, if the other students knew now, if the school knew what she had done, and what their course of action would be.

After getting home yesterday, she had gone straight to her room, where she didn't bother changing out of her uniform and proceeded to curl up under the safety of the covers on her bed and release more of the shame, fear and despair she had carried home with her. She didn't tell anyone, and at dinner, said as little as possible; doing her best to hide the anguish and pose like everything was normal, which felt more painful than anything else. Not that it would have mattered, dinners at her house were typically quiet or tense, unless her perfect little sister started up about how wonderful her day was. Her little sister, Karen, the more athletic one, with bigger boobs and bigger grades. It made sense she was the only light in her parents lives, always receiving praise from them, unwary of their actions and probably believing everything was perfect in her perfect little life.

After dinner, Otome took the shower that she had longed for, assuming the fetal position beneath the warm rain and mist, with more silent sobs, hoping the noise from the falling water shielded them. And then it was to bed, where she prayed for sleep that never came, just wanting to escape the world, to go someplace where no one could hurt her.

Now at school, she had to continue the facade. She avoided Minami, Natsumi, and Kumi that morning, they would definitely notice the terrible shape she was in and then she would have to start dodging questions, which would only place more guilt on her.

She tried to remain as low profile as she could, not that it would have made a difference. Once the school got word, it would only be a matter of time before she was called to the office.

She found a quiet, unpopulated place to hide and eat during lunch, or eat what little she could without being overrun by nausea. The realization of how drastic things were, that she had been pushed to isolating herself for her misdeeds brought more tears that she could not choke back.

She got up quickly. Thankfully there was a trash bin nearby, the little bit of rice ball she managed to swallow had decided to come back up.

After washing her face, Otome continued on. There was a strange, liberating euphoria that came after throwing up. Like the body was saying, 'Well, it's gotten as bad as we can make it. If it happens again, nothing new.'

She was still waiting for it, nothing had happened so far, but she figured it would creep up when she least expected. It may even happen during her last class, as she eagerly awaited to leave, the voice would sound from the intercom, announcing her name. Or it may not even happen that way. The principal or one of the senseis from the school might appear at her house with a corrections officer, and she would be taken away for questioning.

The thought of all these things made her vision hazy, and she would need to stop and catch her breath.

When classes were over, she had just one more thing she needed to do before going straight home, while hoping nothing else would happen.

After her second set of failed plans, she remembered she had left the assessment forms on the table in the council room. During between classes, she had managed to sneak off and found them still laying on the table, surprised maintenance didn't trash them. She still had time to finish them. If there was one thing she could get done, it would be this.

This was on her mind along with quite possibly the only good feeling she had experienced all day. The freedom of going home, where she could be alone again, hopefully. If only for a while, if a corrections officer didn't appear. However, she still would eventually have to sit through the regular script of her angry mother's rantings about her father's tomcatting around.

It only reminded her that she was merely a mistake, an irritating blotch on her parent's once happy union. She wondered if they thought the same way of Karen. Since she was the youngest, they probably intended to have her, making Otome the off one, the one who should never have been. And at this, it begged the question, because of her relation with Itou, had she become just like all the women that her father fraternized with? She wouldn't be surprised if this knowledge would only turn her mother's hatred on her, she already didn't care who heard when she went off in that cold, stern tone of hers, rebuking Otome's father in the most vehement ways.

She was on her way to the faculty office and had just passed through a semi-populated hall, forms in hand, when a familiar, youthful face adorned with a tiny ponytail met her around a turn. She had been standing off to the side by a window, talking with three other girls, when all together, as Otome came walking by, they each cast steady, burning glares at her.

She knew how this worked, and she was in no position for a fight or to be harassed right now. Avoiding eye contact, she stared straight ahead, and kept just enough distance to not show weakness or aggression.

Their eyes followed her every step of the way. She just knew it, if nothing else happened, she just knew they were going to start in on her eventually. She couldn't go near her friends now, so she was alone. It was only a matter of time before they cornered her.

She wasn't even two feet away before one of them called to her.

"Hey you!"

She could hear footsteps behind her.

' _Pick up the pace Otome_ …'

She deserved this. It was for all the trouble she had caused Katsura-san. She should have been more kind to her, even if she didn't like her. She had been wrong, and now it was time for her to pay for it.

She didn't even understand why she was running. She should just turn around and accept it.

She passed right by the corner of another hallway and a husky, familiar voice met her ears.

"Thought you got rid of me, huh?"

1Her head whipped to the right in mid stride. In this moment, when she couldn't unlock her startled gaze, she almost collided with an innocent bystander.

"Whoa!" the girl stumbled back.

"Sorry! Sorry!" Otome bowed frantically, clutching to her chest the forms she nearly dropped.

Her mind had already taken a momentary, cerebral snapshot before her head on collision. Eiichi had been leaning against the corner on one elbow, fist against his temple.

She turned slowly out of her rush to see he had not moved, and was still watching her like prey through his side glance.

No, not him. Please not him. She had enough on her mind. She had not seen him or Kotonoha all day, and just when she thought she could get through this one without any issues, he shows up at the last minute. When she prided herself on being someone pretty good at causing trouble, she had finally learned that he _was_ trouble, and she wanted nothing more to do with it. Though trouble did come with its temptations.

That jet black hair that she just wanted to run her hands through like it was catnip, those sharp, blue eyes of his that stared right through her with that cad, wolfish smile across his lips no less, and with all the strain she was under already, she thought she might just drop cold right there from a heart murmur. That actually didn't sound so bad, now that she thought of it. The perfect way out.

She had stopped in surprise of him, but the girls in her wake continued their pursuit until they crossed right in front of him.

"Whoa, hey, where's the fire?" he somehow noticed they were headed straight for her and rushed forward, stopping them with a subtle raised hand.

"Eiichi-sama…" one of them reacted, surprised.

They looked to him with admiration, but their gazes became questioning as to his action, and they looked to her with continued disdain.

"Did you need to speak with Katou-san about something?" he asked.

More trading of looks, they appeared edgy.

"Eiichi-sama, didn't she try to hurt you and Kotonoha-sama?"

Eiichi turned an eye on her and then back to the enemy posse, "That she did, but she's not doing anything like that now. Why are you girls chasing after her?"

"Well…"

"Come on, this is high school, not maximum security. Umi, I thought you were better than this…"

While he discussed with her pursuers, she kept her eyes to the floor, her shoulder to them, arms stiffly crossed over the forms.

Why was he defending her, what was the catch? They had everything they needed to bring her down, so why not get it over with?

"We just want to make sure she doesn't hurt you and Kotonoha-sama anymore," one girl defended.

"And I can appreciate that fully, but Koto and I have already seen to that. You don't have to worry about Katou-san, she's not the person you believe her to be. Now, I have business to discuss with her. You don't need to play body guard and follow us along, I think I'll be fine. Have you girls been to Ohara's across the street? The coffee isn't bad and a friend of mine really likes their cakes."

A few sighs from the girls, likely with more damaging looks to her that would have been painful if she had seen them.

"Okay…but be careful around her. Kotonoha-sama told me that she's not to be trusted."

Eiichi chuckled, "I'll keep that in mind, thank you."

"We'll see you around Eiichi-sama…"

The quirky attack squad left, and she looked out of the corner of her eye to see Eiichi shaking his head at them. Then, before she knew it, he was standing right next to her.

He heaved a sigh, "I don't think I will ever get use to people calling me that."

She tried to hide it, but she was pretty sure she let some of her hopeless surprise show.

She suffered with a lot the night before, but something he told her had helped to alleviate some of the pain. He had called her beautiful. Not even Makoto, her very first love had told her that, and yet this vagrant had said it with such boldness and honesty, with her held fast in his arms, while remaining true to the one he cherished more than her. What she had done after, she couldn't help herself! How could she just pass up an opportunity like that?

She thought it would have made things a little easier, but no, kissing him had only made things worse on her. She only wanted to alleviate the tension some, but now that she had a taste, she wanted more.

Her chest puffed out against the forms, eyes widening involuntarily with a hiss of air through the nose, she spun on her heel, and was off.

Again, she could hear trailing footsteps behind her brisk ones, "Ya know, you're about the third girl to avoid me this week, and it's not even Wednesday. What is it, my breath?"

A special tease from him to her, no doubt. She didn't remember much about his breath, in fact, she had been so emotionally overrun, there was only so much she could remember; just that he was not as rough and crude as he made himself out to be. Even when he had pushed her off, suspending her torso by the shoulders like that, keeping her at a distance, but supporting her at the same time, and not tossing her to the side like trash, it had been a combination of gentle firmness that was so alien to her, she had to hold herself back from the need to pull on him again. This only made her experience all the more sweet, even if the remorse had been excruciating. She knew he could get violent, he had shown that with Makoto, but she knew now, Eiichi never wanted to hurt anyone if he could help it. Even the threats he made toward her sounded like just a front to get her to stop hurting Kotonoha.

"You're a bastard, you know that?" she did not intend this to slip, she only wanted to avoid him and get home, but he stayed hot on her trail, forcing her hand, so she could only throw whatever she had at him.

"Oh, I'm a bastard? I didn't force my tongue down someone's throat."

She whipped around a turn and stopped with the forms crumpling in one stiff hand. Facing his innocent blinking, with hands in his pockets, she raised a defensive finger at him and sliced it through her stern words, "You knew I would do it. You knew. I don't know how, but you knew. You knew, you knew…" she repeated the slicing and continued to maneuver around another group of students while power walking.

"So what was I supposed to do, walk away?"

What was he thinking, following her? He was aware of what she was capable of. She saw the damage in his eyes, so why was he placing so much focus on her?

"For a smart guy, you can be pretty stupid sometimes, holding a girl while you're devoted to someone else."

"I have that effect on people. You said I was full of crap, but I guess I proved you wrong. Otome, you needed someone and I was serious about everything I said. I was only trying to help as a friend… _Otome_ …"

She rounded another corner.

"I don't need you to tell me that! What I want to know is why you're so concerned for me all of a sudden?"

"You've been dealing with this for too long!"

"Oh! So you're just the big friggin' know it all now, arncha'? And just how would you know?"

"Really? You're asking that question? From day one, it's been pretty obvious. And I overheard a few rumors as well."

"Yeah, right! The only people who would know that would be my friends and—"

"Where do you think I heard them?"

"They…" she stopped with fists clenching at her sides, ruining the forms even more, " _Rrrgh!_ I'm gonna' kill them!" and continued on.

"Well don't get mad with them. They didn't really tell me, like I said, I overheard them…"

She had nothing to say to this, she had nothing more to say to him. She just wanted to get away before something else happened.

"By the way, Koto destroyed the footage. We've decided not to go to the school, you're free."

Oh that was laughable, why would he tell her something like that? She wasn't going to let him play her for the fool again, not with his cunning.

However, her intrigue made her steps slow down, and she noticed suddenly her shoulders felt lighter for some reason.

"I'm guessing with your order?"

"No, she did it all on her own. It might surprise you to know, she's been doing just fine without my help."

" _Not really_ ," she whipped around another corner, walking faster.

Whoopee! Score one more for Kotonoha, being the perfect girl, and making her feel more morose. Another reason why she didn't belong with these two, why she was beginning to feel she didn't belong with anyone.

Why couldn't he just leave her alone? She had caused them nothing but trouble. It seemed to be all she was good for now, even with Makoto and Sekai. She had just been another notch on Makoto's bedpost and another person for Sekai to hate if she had found out.

She blindly pushed through a door.

"Why won't you take a hint and just go away! Why are you following me!?" she shouted back.

"Otome!"

" _No!_ "

"Where are you going!?"

"Away from you!"

"No, I mean seriously, where are you going!? You just led us all the way out to the track field!"

" _Ack!_ " she stopped and looked around frantically, her settings had suddenly changed from a bland hallway to a grass padded field and bleachers with her being none the wiser.

"Weren't you headed somewhere with those papers?" he poked a finger when he caught up.

She shot a glance down at the rumpled assessment forms in her hands. Would the faculty even accept these now?

"You look like you're having a pretty rough day," now standing calmly in front of her.

"Why should you care?" she leered.

"You didn't sleep much last night, did you?"

She almost touched her face, "Yeah so!? That's pretty obvious."

"I'm not trying to guess here. Why won't you let someone show concern?"

"Why are you even here? What makes you think I'm being so honest with you, huh? Maybe I'm just planning another trap, did you ever think that?"

"And so I'm to assume that kiss meant nothing…"

The kiss, he had brought it up, and so casually too, but not without notable concern. She was surprised he brought it up at all, she thought that was something he'd rather leave alone. Or maybe it was her.

Was she really about to say it?

"Well…maybe it didn't…" she looked away.

He didn't say anything, and she worried she might have struck a nerve unintentionally. She would take it back immediately if she did. How could she have lied to him like that again, this time about something so precious to her?

She risked a timid side glance and saw that he was peering at her inquisitively, head cocked to the right with a hand hanging in one pocket. She loved it when he did that, but of course this wouldn't bother him, he had it made.

"Listen, Koto knows I'm here, and she knows about what happened. She didn't come herself because she figured this was something you and I needed to sort out, and she knows if she did, things would be more awkward and there would only be sparks between you two."

"I wouldn't be surprised if she never wants to see my face again…"

He began scratching or rubbing his forehead, or something. She could never figure out why he did that so much. She knew of the rumors about his 'chronic headache syndrome' or whatever, maybe this was why. Through noticing him more, she had actually found this charming. It made him look like he was thinking really hard about something, which must have been the case, because he certainly had a lot to say most of the time.

"You're not too far from it. Is that why you're resigning from student council next year?" he asked.

"Wow, she just tells you everything, doesn't she?"

"It's a two way street, if you haven't noticed. Really, we both figured that might be the case. She doesn't want you to resign."

"Well, you two have definitely been doing a lot of thinking about me. Why? So she can browbeat me all of next year?"

"You can bet you've created a lot of reasons for her to be angry with you, but she's more forgiving than you give her credit."

"How can you guys have such trust for each other? I thought it would…I don't know, put you guys on the rocks or something. I know it's hard for you to believe, but that's not why I…kissed you…"

"I realize that. It's like I said before, you're a good person," he stepped forward, "I _know_ you're a good person, you've just made some bad decisions. I'm here to tell you that we forgive you."

"You forgive me, wow, that's rich."

"Is it so hard for you to comprehend?" he looked at her with narrowed concern.

"Well, yeah! Don't you get it? I tried to destroy you! I wanted to embarrass and ruin both of you! I…I hated you…"

He padded a section of his coat, but it must have been unintentional, because he consciously lowered his hand and shuffled one of his shoes in the grass. He looked like he was thinking about what to say next.

And then he lifted his head, "You're hate was founded on false principles. If you really wanted to do that, you would have tried it, long ago. You did everything based on what you thought you saw, not what you really felt. Truth can be stranger than fiction. A guy and a girl alone in a confined room, anyone would assume the worst, but we already went over this. When I approached you, it was in part to show what you thought of me wasn't true. What you did may have been out of pure affection, but subconsciously, maybe you wanted to see for yourself how true your own doubts were. And when you realized how wrong they really were, that's when you ran. The fact of the matter is, you don't hate me now, do you?"

That was some wacky psych lingo he had going for him there. In the end, she was just another one of his 'patients', and she never wanted that. Otome the bitch, Otome the problem child. 'We just want to help, Otome.' She could never amount up to anyone's standards. Kotonoha and Eiichi had popularity up to their necks, while she had become just another stepping stone.

"Stop acting like you know me so well! You think just because you're popular, you can suddenly walk on water!? You don't come from my family! You have no idea what it's like!"

For some reason he started wincing, and touched his head again, and it threw her off. She tried to ignore it. If she brought it up, it would only change the subject, but it made her uneasy. If something happened to him, she'd call for help, no matter how angry she was with him. The fact of the matter was, she still loved him.

He lowered his arm and it looked like he recovered. He spoke sternly, "Do you intend on explaining that more?"

"What!? No!"

"Then why did you mention it?"

How was she supposed to answer that?

"I…I don't…" she remembered, despite what she thought she knew, she really didn't know anything about him. "It's different…" her stressed voice lowered to a mutter while brooding to the grass, "I don't have a happy family to come home to…"

He waited a moment, "Do you want to know why I've forgiven you?"

"Because I'm a 'good person', right?" she mockingly nodded her head side to side.

"Because you're a human being. If you hadn't stopped, I would have gone through with bringing you down, but only to stop you from harming others. When I yelled at you, that was my own fault, I lost control of my anger again, and it felt horrible. I saw how much it hurt you, and I did my best to take it back. And…" he took a moment to look at the grass, flexing his hands, and then looked her right in the eyes, "…as good as it felt when you kissed me…it did hurt…"

He really thought that? He liked it too!? She had spent this entire time thinking he had been insulted by it. She knew he was telling the truth, it was glowing a pinkish-red right across the bridge of his nose. He looked so cute, getting nervous like that.

"I can only imagine what it must feel like coming home, afraid of what's going to happen next. I don't want to drop comparisons here, but you seem to forget who you're talking to. Do you remember the rumors about me? I wasn't always Eiichi the Hero…"

She spoke slowly, her words weighed down by her shame, "Yeah…my friends and I made fun of you a lot when you weren't around…we were actually afraid of you…well, I was…"

"And it's a good thing you had them. You see, that's pretty much how everyone felt about me. I don't know what it's like to have a harsh family, but I know what it's like to feel scared and small, all the time. I wasn't disgusted with you, Otome. If you hadn't run away, we could have talked. You could say you unwittingly got back at me with that. I understand it was something important, and I don't know about you, but I didn't think it was small and trivial."

She had thought that, it felt ridiculous that it was so important to her. For some stupid reason, she had convinced herself it was just one stupid, little kiss, so what would be the harm? He must have felt like she laid another trap for him. It was not her intention, but if that really was the case, she fell right into it with him.

"But you realized how much it hurt me. I would have still told Koto when you weren't around, and gotten in trouble for it, but we would still be together, just like we are now. Things could have turned out better, but they still can. I was very cold to you these past few months because of everything at the festival. I never really forgave you for it, and I'm sorry…"

"Well, it's kinda' late now, don't you think?"

 _No, no, not true, not true!_ Why did she keep saying stuff she didn't mean!? She meant because of what she did.

He stood there, looking hurt, but continued, "No it's not…I want us to put this behind us and work towards something better. I'm willing to make a change. The question is, are you?"

"What do you mean, change?" she almost scoffed at the idea. Just what exactly did he want her to change? It was pretty obvious, 'stop breaking the rules Otome.' 'You're only making it harder on yourself, Otome.'

"It's not even a matter of literal change, it's not even a matter of what _I_ want," patting his chest and then pointing at her, "It's what _you_ decide. It's a lot simpler, and yet it might be the most difficult thing you will ever do—"

"Spit it out already!" damn he talked too much, the anticipation was torture.

"Just…be satisfied with yourself. Be satisfied with Otome."

She stared back at him, air hissing out of his nostrils after the tension. He seemed like he had been really scared to tell her that.

She didn't really know what to say to this. Be yourself. Sure, it was one of those classic philosophies they taught back in primary school, through teachers that might not remember who she was and posters on overly decorated walls of finger paintings. However, all that lack luster inspiration got lost somewhere in her education. No one, especially not her family, had ever said it to her with such conviction.

"I think you've been so busy, you haven't given time to look at the real Otome. You may find it hard to believe, but behind that callous shell, I see someone who's sweet, protective, kind, and very deserving of those same virtues."

She gritted her teeth, glaring fire at him.

Who did he think he was, spouting all this crap, trying to butter her up? She didn't want his help, she was just fine on her own…was she? From what he expressed, there must have been a time when he thought the same way. Was he right? Just minutes ago, she had been staring expulsion in the face, and a likely misdemeanor or even a felony charge. It only took a few words from him to make all of that go away. If she walked away now, it would feel like she was taking what he had done for granted.

Her jaw loosened, though even now it felt tense.

The last time she had looked in the mirror had been this morning, and it had been uglier than before. She had avoided the mirror in the bathroom, while washing her face. In fact, she couldn't remember once looking in that mirror and smiling, or being satisfied with what she saw. How long had she been thinking like this? When she first met Katsura? Or…had it been Karen? Her own sister… And where had it gotten her? She had done terrible things she never imagined possible for her, even to someone she cared about. When everyone around her was laying the hammer down, he stood here repeating the same good things. Sure, he pointed out the bad things, but still, _he_ told her she was beautiful, _he_ told her she was good without holding back, _he_ who was saying all these wonderful things to her, the first and only guy so far to say them to her, even though he couldn't have her. With all his power and appeal, it would have been so easy for him, but he wouldn't let himself have her. Of course, he was dating 'miss perfect'…but he had said this to her anyways.

"Do you hate me now, because I said that?" he muttered somberly.

For a guy with so much confidence, he seemed pretty concerned with how she felt about him all of a sudden.

"No…I don't hate you…" she sulked, but how was she supposed to follow that up? "It may be hard for you to believe—"

"If I didn't believe a word you said, I wouldn't be standing here."

She had to give him that. That time he avoided her and stormed off had been scary, _Twilight Zone_ status. Although there was no way he knew anything about what she was planning. She had assumed it was just because he found another reason to hate her.

"I…I feel awful about what I did. I have to admit, I was really scared…Sawanaga told me he and Katsura had a history, but I didn't know…what did he do to her?"

He lowered his gaze and she noticed his fingers waving and flexing next to each other, "He didn't really do anything to her, but I'd rather not speak of it. She handled Sawanaga on her own, and did just fine, but I'd advise you stay away from him during your remaining years here. Something tells me he has a dark future ahead if he doesn't wise up."

"I was just so freaked out when that happened. I didn't think Katsura-san would react so violently, and Sawanaga running completely surprised me. I wish I could have seen exactly what happened in there…"

"Probably best you didn't. For a smart girl, you can be pretty stupid sometimes. Remember, she saved my life, but had to kill someone to do it. It's something that's haunted her ever since."

She looked up at him and managed a weary smirk, "So that's not just a rumor…"

"It's not…"

She cast her eyes down, ruffling the papers in one hand. She still couldn't figure out what to say to his statement, "I never apologized for it, and you've already forgiven me…I don't know how I could ever take back what I did."

"You can start by continuing with your life. Forgiving yourself and taking better care of yourself wouldn't be a bad move either," she peeked up as he was giving the bags under her eyes more analysis. "And if you want to know real forgiveness, try being our friend. Give it time, but I think if you stick with student council, and give talking with Koto a shot, you'll learn that you two can patch things up pretty well."

She couldn't believe this was happening. Never in a million years had she ever known someone to be this forgiving. Anyone else would have had her locked up and thrown away the key by now.

"No…I can't…"

"What, is it too much?"

"Yes! It's…" she croaked.

She couldn't cry now, his nature might force him to her again, and she wouldn't be able to live with herself if that happened. She didn't even know if she could stand to be around them now, much less him.

He spoke, "I'm not going to force you to do anything. Last time was because you were in a really dark place and I couldn't just leave you that way. Koto said something to me yesterday that I had a really hard time accepting, but she was right. If you don't want any help, or you don't want our help, we understand, and we'll leave you alone. But I would much rather see you become our friend than have you sulking around campus. My input is that it would be the better of the two choices. Don't be surprised if we turn up every now and then though, even after I graduate. Otome, with the measures you took, I have to say, you wanted our attention. And now…I think you're stuck with us…"

Was it really possible for her to become their friend, after everything she did? She had never heard of something so strange. She had just gotten settled with avoiding him.

"You saying you're going to stalk me now?" she retorted.

"It's like you want to make everything sound bad. I'm saying if you say no, we're still going to be here to talk to, if you change your mind."

To have Eiichi to go to for 'council' sounded like one of the most bizarre and unlikely things to ever happen for her, but where else did she have to go? Since her friends seemed to have turned over a new leaf, they might just stop talking to her if she went to them. There was no one else closer or more available. She was free now, but this was still hanging over her head.

He lifted a reassuring hand, "Just think about it, you don't have to answer now…"

He may have not loved her the way she wanted him to, but she was getting the feeling he loved her somehow. The common practice for anyone would have been to let the person down easy and then avoid them like the plague, but he actually wanted to bring her closer. He just kept pushing her, and she wasn't even sure where, but he had given back her freedom, so wherever it was, it must be someplace good. Just like with the kiss, how could she pass this up?

She clasped the papers in both hands, wobbling and playing with the parchment, "Can…can I join you guys for lunch…sometime…"

When she looked back at it him, the surprise to see his face light up so brilliantly made her reel away. A smile like that on him was really unbecoming.

"I…I mean, b-because things have been a little weird with my friends…it's been hard to be around them…"

"Otome, we eat on the roof."

"You eat on the roof!?" they were more daring than she thought.

"Yeah, I only learned about it last year, and I'm a senior. The senseis don't really check it that much. And about your friends, tell them I'm willing to talk with them."

"Y-you are?"

"I know my expressions toward them last year were very offensive, for obvious reasons, but I'm willing to hear them out and make amends. All those times I picked Koto up from your meetings, I've noticed they've been avoiding me and I get the feeling I scared them off."

"They'll be pretty blown away once they know I've been talking to you…and on such good terms…"

"You might get a charisma boost with that," he chuckled.

"Yeah…" she smoothed the papers, feeling more at ease.

Everything was suddenly starting to fall into place, in one day! It almost felt too good to be true. People she considered enemies were now becoming her friends. The feeling didn't seem that farfetched, she had seen it in action movies. They had given her future, her life back, and she felt like she owed them everything. She was just happy to see him being so kind to her again, everything from the day before had been so mixed up, she was beginning to feeling like his approaching her had been a fluke, like she had imagined it.

"And with that out of the way…"

He thrust his hands down, palms facing toward her. This was startlingly familiar.

Every limb in her body seized up as she lurched back, " _Y-You're not gonna' do it again, are you_!?"

 _And_ the good feeling was gone.

" _What_? No! This…" he shook his arms, "I'm-I'm making myself your target. Gimme' your best shot."

"What are you getting at?"

"Think of it as your special initiation into our group. You've been wanting to get it out, I can tell. We're alone, no one's going to hear. You have the floor Otome, this time use your words, not your lips. It's confession time my child."

" _Oh no_ …you don't expect me to—"

"Come on, you're a tough girl. If you can coax yourself into planting one on me, then three measly words should be a piece of cake."

"It's not just three measly words! _I mean_ ," she couldn't do it, not like this, it was too sudden, "No way!"

"You can run if you want, but saying it will help a lot more."

"Why should I? What good will it do me?"

"You're aware of what closure is, right? That feeling of knowing you completed something, doing what you expected of yourself."

"I never expected this!"

"Is that so, hmm…" he mused at the clouds, "I guess you really did only want me for my bod then."

"Oh you are so full of yourself!" she pointed. "All that fame has gone right to your head Eiichi Kuzoka!" though this wise ass she was yelling at did have a pretty hard ass, and a set of abs and chest she could probably bounce a yen off of. She knew, she had touched them. What did he do after school anyways? He had to play a sport of some kind, there was no way all that just happened.

"Oh wow," he smoothed out with sarcasm, "You might be right. It sneaks up on you, doesn't it?"

How did he manage to get under her skin so easily? This is what made her just want to punch him. He did make himself 'her target'…

" _Tch_ …" she crossed her arms, giving the grass a withdrawn head shaking, "I swear, you can be pretty ungraceful sometimes…"

"What's graceful about it?"

She stopped.

"When is it ever perfect? When is it ever how you imagined it, exactly? If you keep thinking like that, it may never happen for you. From everything you've learned, you should be able to understand. What matters is the here and now."

She leered at him and then turned with ferocity, "Fine! You want to hear it so bad!? Eiichi Kuzoka, I _luh_ …" this felt too weird, suddenly her chest hurt like before, her hands felt cold and she had to collect herself. She shut her eyes as tight as she could, with grit teeth and fists at her sides, she leaned into the pain, forcing it out, "I _luh_ …"

She couldn't get it to come out, she had never done this before and she sounded so stupid. She had already slept with a guy, but she couldn't get herself to say three stupid, childish words. He was such a jerk, pushing her to do this in broad daylight, with all his talk of feelings and 'we're all alone, so it's okay'… That one sounded more pervy than she wanted, but so what, he said it, not her.

"Try again, this time with less vinegar and more honey."

"What, you want me to sound like one of those mushy, slice of life anime girls you probably drool over?" What was she saying!? Her favorite had always been Makoto Sawatari from _Kanon_ , and not because she had the same name as Itou. She could still remember clutching her pillow and bawling her eyes out when Makoto passed on to continue her other life as a fox, but _no one_ would _ever_ hear her admit to that.

He was eyeing her keenly…why was he suddenly looking at her like that?

"I just want you to feel like _you_ said it. Don't worry about what I think. This has little to do with me, you're the one in the spotlight."

"Yeah, putting a girl on the spot isn't the right way to go about it."

"If you came to me with this, wouldn't you be putting me on the spot?"

"Not really, the answer is easy for you."

He gazed at her with a swivel of his chin, "It's not as easy as you think…"

What did he mean by that? But he had pretty much confessed that he found her attractive, or more importantly, that he just simply liked her. He was very honest, almost to a level of brutality. If he could be that honest with her, this was the least she could do.

"Eiichi Kuzoka…" she rolled her eyes before shutting them, heaving an exhausted sigh. "I…" there was no way this could sound any less weird. "I…" just focus on those eyes…those deep, blue eyes…

' _One word at a time Otome_ … _'_

"I…love…you…"

They blinked at her and smiled.

"There, I said it, okay…" looking away, her face felt really, really warm.

He stepped closer and stuck out his hand.

"I appreciate your affections, but I can only answer them as a friend…I'm sorry Otome, but you can't have your cake and eat it too…"

"Like I said, what was the point?" she frowned, exhausted.

"That you made it known to the person in question. I'm a firm believer that actions speak louder than words, but you have to admit, it's harder being honest about your feelings than simply responding with body language. It takes a different kind of courage, and you wouldn't have said it if you didn't want me to hear it…"

A little gust of wind picked up, brushing those dark locks over his eyes, and it felt that much harder for her to let go.

He was right. Somehow, in her screwed up little life, she had managed to do everything but say those words to someone she cared about. With Makoto, she really only admitted her admiration, in a dark room no less. It was nothing as outright as this. In fact, it had been what she imagined the natural course of things. To confess first, and yet she lost sight of it, all the simplicities of natural love and companionship doused by her infectious desires.

"Hey…"

She turned away, weary from her self-berating to see his hand was still out.

"Stop beating yourself up, you are so much more than that. Everybody makes mistakes, you will heal from this…things will get better…"

Why did she suddenly feel he wasn't referring to just her recent mistakes? Like he knew her more than she knew herself. Maybe it was her imagination. She was really tired, stressed and emotional. That would explain it.

Reluctantly, her hand edged toward his.

"You're not going to try anything funny, are you?"

She looked from his hand, this time to be greeted with a compassionate smile.

"Be careful…I don't think I'm over you yet," she said with sternness, and their hands clapped together.

"Understood. I won't have to beat you off with a stick, will I?"

"You're such a boyscout…"

-Rock n' Roll Aint' Noise Pollution by AC/DC-

AN: Haha, yeah this is fine, while Eiichi is Megadeth, Otome would be an AC/DC fan.

I can see Otome jamming out to her favorite tunes while no one is home, jumping on her bed, dancing around her room without a care in the world, light on her feet, free spirited, having a good time and just being herself. I know I said before that I would be posting this early, the spooky thing is, I didn't know this would be the reason why O_O… I have gone through a similar trial very recently, where I was discovering 'meanings' in ever little part of my life. It's been making me very cautious and I was not behaving like my normal self. Writing has been a healthy escape from this, but I needed to tackle it. My uncle saw this in me and reminded me of a very important lesson that everyone should take with them. Not everything has to have a meaning to it, and his teaching was a new boost on my path to being more comfortable with myself. He showed me that people are going to try and convince you that you should be worried about every little thing. That may not be how they approach you with it, but you will know them by their works. Life itself can do this as well. Our mistakes are just that, mistakes. They're there for us to learn by, but once that is done, we should not dwell on them, let the thought pass. And we should not be ashamed to relish in our victories, no matter how many or few they may be. I thank God for both my victories and mistakes. I know I don't have to, but I do it anyways, because after all, He gave them to me, to make me stronger. We can attach meanings to anything in this life pretty easily, and it can be fun if we don't take it too seriously. I attach meanings to my writing a lot, because it connects me more with what I'm doing. But there are things that are just what they are, and we can choose to take 'em or leave 'em. Lest we forget, "The Dude abides" and Rock n' Roll is just Rock n' Roll.

-"We're just talkin' 'bout the future, Forget about the past, It'll always be with us, It's never gonna die…Nevah' Gonna' Die!"-

You're listening to KWMJ radio, bringing you all the hits, all the time. I am your host, WolfManJim, howlin' at you live from the smoky den studio deep within the dark backwoods of your mind, reminding everyone to just be yourselves and stay safe out there. I'll see you kids at the last chapter.

-"Rock n' roll, it will survive! Yes it will, haha!"-

1 "Heather's Song" by Andy McKee


	15. Chapter 15 The Heroes of Sakakino

**Chapter 15: The Heroes of Sakakino**

 **A Triple Date**

It was afternoon, and the traffic outside the Ohara Sweets Shop sped by noisily with busy people on their way to get shopping done, running errands, or traveling to meetings. Sidewalk pedestrians sauntered past in the cool, lethargy inducing spring air, some in school uniforms, others in business or casual attire.

Against the brick wall several feet from the door, leaned a rebellious looking young man, with a head of black flecked hair and a sharp gaze in his uncanny intelligent eyes, a tieless, unbuttoned Sakakino uniform hung loosely over his slacks. Next to him, also leaning against the wall, with hands in his pockets, in a sibling like attempt to mimic his adjoining predecessor, a gangly, yet gentlemanly looking young man in a pair of spectacles. His stature dwarfed a rough seven inches by his companion, his Sakakino uniform well-kept and aligned with a red tie present. His bright, boyish eyes looked about from under brown, curving locks, with gentle excitement and an unannounced delight for the situation he found himself in, as the two conversed lively under the traffic noises.

Eiichi laughed heartily, "Haha! So that's what happened?"

"Y-Yeah…" Yuuki blushed.

"See? You took your first big step and you didn't even need my help," Eiichi balled one of his hands into a fist and gave Yuuki a tap on the shoulder. "Nice going there, smooth operator," a complement that was more true about Yuuki, in Eiichi's opinion, than Yuuki would have given himself credit. "I'm just surprised it happened so fast for you two, I thought Chie n' I were gonna' have to pull on the both of you more."

Eiichi had learned about Roka and Yuuki's first encounter through Yuuki some days ago, but never got much of a chance to talk with him about it because they were both either busy with studying or attending to other matters. When Eiichi first saw them together during their lunches, he was ecstatic and overjoyed.

Plus, a factor reached his attention and had him feeling a happiness he didn't expect. Because of their joint efforts, his special lunch with Koto that he always looked forward to for the solitude and quality time, had become a gathering with four additional people that he had special ties to in one way or another. And he was happy.

"I don't know how it happened so quick, myself. Just before I knew it, we were kissing!"

"Well, you two have had it bad for each other long enough."

"I guess you're right. It just kinda' happened, and I didn't even know what I was doing."

"That's the funny thing about it, you don't know when it'll happen until it really happens. It kinda' throw you off guard, huh?"

"Yeah…like everything is just happening automatically…"

Eiichi took another drag as they stood shoulder to shoulder, contently watching the passing traffic and sidewalk pedestrians. He had noticed a few uniformed skirts and casual dresses that had passed by, giving the two a perfervid look over before continuing on. It would only be disappointing for them to discover these two were already spoken for. He gave it a quick thought, amazed it only just crossed his mind, but they must look like night and day.

He saw Yuuki peek a side glance at him, thinking the same thing.

"You know, for the short time we've known each other, I'm going to find it really difficult not seeing you around campus."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, you've become like a household name. Even when I didn't know you, I knew about you. I don't think people will stop talking about you for a while…"

"Aw~ you've gotten all attached to me."

"H-Hey, don't say weird things!"

"Well, be sure to tell the new freshman my death defying legacy."

"Yeah, I think I'll just let that be…"

Eiichi chuckled and then turned, giving Yuuki a smile, "Well, to be honest, you're the first real friend I've ever had."

Yuuki was struck by this, "R…really?"

"Yeah…" he nodded.

Yuuki tilted his head down and then back up, "Thanks man…"

"No problem buddy…" and then Eiichi balled his hand into a fist again, presenting it to Yuuki, "C'mon…"

"What's that?"

"A fist bump. Please tell me you know what a fist bump is…" he droned.

"No, I do…it's just the first time anyone's every offered me one…you're the first friend I've ever had as well…"

Eiichi smirked, "Yeah, they probably thought you were too astute for it."

" _Hey_ ," Yuuki irked, but then looked at the gesture still before him.

In his awkwardness, he made a fist and padded against Eiichi's.

"Now it's official," Eiichi nodded back to the traffic, "And you guys will get to see enough of me outside of school. You can come by to visit whenever you like. Koto has a key now, so feel free to hang out while Torio and I are away."

"Oh yeah, speaking of which, do you think you're going to get into your school of choice?"

Eiichi breathed a sigh, "Well, I have three lined up, no idea which is going to take me. I don't even know if I want to stay on campus."

"Won't you two be lonely if that happens?"

"Yeah…I guess it would be ideal. I won't have to drive anywhere if I stay on campus. It would be the longest we've ever been separated. I'm still thinking about it, but when you look at it, it's kind of another exorcise."

"Exorcise?"

"In patience, in loyalty. Learning to be apart will strengthen us. I've learned in the weirdest ways that life can take you down all kinds of roads. If we can't stand to be away from each other, how are we going to handle it if something like that comes up where we are separated anyways?"

Yuuki mused to the traffic, "I suppose you have a point…"

"I don't want it to happen, but that might end up being the case…" Eiichi's chin furrowed, and he shrugged it off.

He didn't know who would have the toughest time, maybe they could make a game out of that, to laugh off the tension. Depending which university accepted him, if any, he may end up being too far away to visit every weekend. However, Kotonoha might do it anyways, she did have a limo. That would be a relief. It was the being away from her, being away from home on a regular basis that gave him this empty feeling in his stomach. He was an introvert after all, they both were! Being in a new place, surrounded by new people, admittedly made him uneasy.

He decided to change the subject, "On a different note, I'm pretty sure Tokyo U is out of the question, I'm shooting high with that one."

"What are you going to major in?"

Eiichi gave it some thought. He had actually had this in the back of his mind for a while now, considering the major events of the past year.

"I'm thinking a major in psychology with a minor in pre-law, or I might go all out and get a double major, I want to see where I'll be after the first two years."

"Get the psychology degree," Yuuki blurted with wide eyes.

"W-Well…"

"I can't explain why, just get it. I think you'll blaze right through it."

"Um…okay. Thanks?"

"Your welcome," Yuuki faced forward.

That was…sudden. A quick inspection showed Yuuki to be fuming with confidence for him. He was probably right, and as Eiichi took another drag, he figured he would take Yuuki's word for it. Yuuki had been listening to him long enough anyways.

"You know, when you first took that electric cig thing out, it really threw me off. I was seriously thinking we were going to get caught."

"Oh yeah…" Eiichi rolled the vaporizer around in his hand.

"You kind of do behave like a delinquent sometimes."

"Nah, people just gave me that title. I'm just Eiichi, and Eiichi is all that I am. I believe there are rules in our society that don't have any firm ground. They're there to be broken, and I think it bears no reflection on a person's true nature if they are," he took another drag. "Plus I like it. And Koto gave it to me," he smiled.

Yuuki snickered and checked his phone, "What's taking them so long?"

"Get used to it, there's a reason why they told us to meet them here," Eiichi was certain this was the start of a trend.

After another few minutes of idle chatting, Yuuki looked up the walkway.

"There they are. And they brought Otome!"

Oh no, they brought Otome. Why, in the name of all that was good a decent, did they bring Otome!?

Sure enough, from their perspective they could see three, budding young girls in Sakakino uniforms, black stockings and all, headed up the sidewalk toward them. The long haired, fair and modest Kotonoha, the short and feisty, purple twin-tailed Roka, and between them, the just as feisty, but willful Otome, currently in an obvious state of bashful submissiveness.

It's not that Eiichi didn't want her to be here, but he knew she was self-conscious of the fact she was pretty much a fifth wheel, with her former rival and him around to boot, not to mention Roka, the one she accused him of sleeping with behind Koto's back. He couldn't help feeling sorry for her, for her worries about being inferior. It was all because of his half-witted offer to have her join their lunch group, which was _all couples_ now, except for days when Chie decided to join, in which Otome did not feel as out of place. He didn't see any problem with it, but it was her awareness that made it a problem. Nonetheless, she continued to join their lunches, every day in fact. Though timid about the situation, she was slowly beginning to get livelier with conversation. He had noticed in her output a display of perseverance, like she was searching for something, which is why he decided to not say anything after the fact, despite her dampened confidence. She just kept pushing those worries aside, allowing herself to get swept up with everyone else. Compared to confessing to him, he thought this would be mental torture for her, but she must have not seen it that way. She was learning. Slowly, but surely.

The three approached. Koto and Eiichi greeted each other in their usual manner, with a quick 'hello' kiss, while considering the mixed company. Yuuki approached Roka with some still visible shyness, but not without casual hand holding.

Eiichi saw Otome, standing out as she had been all that past week. Her pain caused him pain, that was for sure. Her output made a residual flutter every time she saw him with Koto, but he had noticed a desensitization in the past few days. She had seen them together enough, even before befriending him, so this reaction was not as intense as it had been in days before.

"Hey Otome…" Eiichi nodded with a smile.

"Hey Eiichi…" Otome smiled back, as if to say 'I'm doing fine.'

This was meant to be a double date, though all their lunches together were not all that different, just less public. This might have been why he was so concerned for her sake. Though there was a chance someone might notice her state of affairs and be drawn to her. She couldn't tell, but the lonely girl look was cute on her.

Otome busied herself with the interactions between Roka and Yuuki, so Eiichi took this opportunity to communicate with his significant other, giving Koto an obvious dim look.

She saw it, and returned with blank confusion and an encrypted message, ' _What?_ '

Eiichi made a motion with his head to the object of his concerns, with moving lips that spouted a few unheard cracks of broken communication, " _What is she doing here? Hasn't she been through enough?_ "

Koto sighed, glancing away, agitated, and then stared back at him, ' _I understand she's been feeling awkward, but she's getting used to it. I'm sorry this is last minute, I know we originally planned this to be just the four of us, but these types of things are casual, and I'd feel bad if we just left her out. It's a step up for her to be with us somewhere else for a change._ '

Still, it would have been nice if she let him know ahead of time, so they could discuss it.

' _Besides, you never know. A girl in her position really stands out._ ' At least they agreed on that.

"Are you two okay? You're just…glaring at each other..." Roka had suddenly called attention to their supernatural radio frequency.

"Oh-oh! Um! No, that's not it!" Kotonoha flapped her hands.

Eiichi panicked alongside her, "Y-Yeah! K-Koto just had something in her eye."

"A-And I thought he had a smudge on his face!"

"Oh-kaaay…" Roka's puzzled eyes shifted between the two as Otome and Yuuki stared with her.

"Haha…Well, how about we head inside, afternoons like this don't just wait around for anyone," Eiichi moved rigidly to the door. "After you Koto," he said in a pasty, perfunctory voice.

"Thank you Eiichi," responding with similar perfunctoriness.

Eiichi held the door open for the other three as well, while ignoring their akin, suspicious thoughts.

Inside the Ohara Sweets Shop, it was crowded and busy as usual. It was the Saturday before finals, and everyone was enjoying their few hours of free time available before having to buckle down and review. Eiichi wondered if they would even find a table for their large group.

"Eiichi, you and Otome get the drinks. We'll go find some seats," these were again, Kotonoha's words.

When Eiichi considered it, this was a test for all three of them. Having Otome around brought about a focus of temperance for Kotonoha. She was doing her best, despite her and Otome's rough past, to be as open and welcoming as possible. She didn't begrudge it, but it was taking her some getting used to. She was fast on the uptake with this sort of thing, after everything Eiichi had told her, and made little efforts here and there to get Otome more comfortable around him.

After orders were presumably blurted out to them, the others walked off and began their hopeful search.

Standing next to Otome in line had only been the first time this week Eiichi had a chance to talk with her casually. They didn't really look at each other, pretending to pick out what they were going to order.

"So um…how are you holding up?" he asked.

"Fine, fine…I'm good…" she nodded simply.

"How are things at home?"

"The same…" she muttered.

He had dealt with a lot in his short time, but this was new to him.

"So, how are things with your sister?"

"She's doing good, as usual…but I'm…I'm trying to talk with her more…" she looked to him, nodding.

"Good, that's good. Uh…what about finals? Do you think you're ready?"

A flare of unease, "Um…I guess. What about you?"

"I think I'll do alright. I really had to rush last year, I wasn't exactly the perfect student."

A little smile from her and she looked back at the menu.

"I know what she's doing…" Otome voiced suddenly.

"You mean Koto?"

"Yeah, I have to say I'm surprised. She wasn't like that at all, last semester. She's changed in a lot of different ways."

"Yeah, she has…but she's still just as kind. Does it bother you she's doing this?"

She didn't respond immediately. From what he could read, it was not a bother per say, it just threw her off. It wasn't what she had been familiar with.

"No…it still feels a little weird though, talking to her like this, but…I think now I see what you meant…"

He rested a hand on her shoulder and she looked at him, a little startled.

"Give it time. One day, it's not even gonna' be a thought in your head."

She gave a weary smile, "Thanks…"

They saw the others had managed to miraculously find a space on the booth when they made it back with the drinks.

"This space just opened up when we got here," Koto added while Otome and Eiichi arranged the drinks.

"Ah, so Roka used her evil stare, did she?" Eiichi poked.

"I don't have an evil stare!" Roka flared.

Eiichi chuckled at her and Yuuki developed a warm blush at his girlfriend's short fuse.

' _You're welcome, Yuuki_.'

Yuuki and Roka sat in the booth side of the table. Kotonoha sat in a chair facing Roka on the opposite side with one for Eiichi next to her and an extra she grabbed for Otome and placed on the side of the table, between her and Roka, to be considered 'the girl's side'.

Koto and Roka were already engaged in a conversation about pop idols, while Yuuki had been sitting by, just kind of absorbing without much to say.

"I think she's amazing. There's this one song she does that I can't listen to enough! The main part is so good," Roka went on.

"She has a very uplifting voice. That other one she does is fantastic as well," Koto joined Roka's excitement.

Otome did not really insert herself into the conversation until making a subtle remark that wound up getting her dragged into it anyways, and before she knew it, she was talking as much as the other two.

While the girls were at it, Eiichi turned his lazy, contented gaze on Yuuki.

"So, read anything good lately?"

"Well, not as much recently, what with all that's been going on, but I'm in this particular book about a horror writer who goes stir crazy. He starts having disturbing nightmares about his dead love."

"I'm not sure horror would be the ideal genre for someone with a recently deceased love."

"Yeah! It's really gripping though, he starts getting paranoid and…"

Idle topics were passed back and forth for several minutes. Eiichi had missed this, what with all the returning drama and mixed emotions, love triangles, and uncertain futures, this was what he enjoyed most about people.

When Koto noticed the guys having their discussion on literature, she wanted to join, and wound up pulling the other two in with her. Both Roka and Otome were not the astute readers their other three friends represented themselves as, and between themselves, found a pleasant commonality in this.

When words died down at one point, Roka looked like she was thinking about something.

"I really wish we could have done better in basketball this year," she said, and Eiichi sensed that Otome felt somewhat responsible for this as well.

"Otome, didn't you play?" Eiichi pulled her back.

"Yeah…" she frowned.

"You were pretty good Otome, but it looked like something was bothering you for a while. I was kind of scared to ask because you got angry here and there," Roka said.

Otome made a nervous glance to her before continuing to stare at her drink.

Kotonoha saw this as her chance to step in, "She was in love with someone, but he did not feel the same way about her. I cornered her during one of our meetings and got her to fess up."

"Oh no! I'm so sorry Otome…"

Otome gulped and developed a hot blush, still averting her eyes.

"Who was it?" oh great…

"I-It doesn't matter…" Otome muttered.

"Yes it does."

"Roka…"

She turned toward Eiichi. His sympathetic expression was joined with a subtle patting motion with the hand, giving her a signal to simmer down.

"Okay…" her voice lowered like she had just been scolded.

"It's alright…" Otome lifted her head. "I should have known that he was already taken, and I shouldn't have let it get in the way of my game. I'm sorry Roka."

"No, it's understandable. I don't think you were the reason why."

"Plus, I found out later he was kind of a jerk anyways," the corner of her mouth grinned across the table at Eiichi.

Eiichi replied with a silent chuckle to her.

"I know what that's like, I wonder if I'm to blame as well…" Roka said. "I um…I guess I had the same problem as you. I was thinking of someone…"

Eiichi saw her arm move to Yuuki, likely holding his hand when she said it. He hoped that was his hand.

"Roka, you could not be more obvious right now," Otome grinned fiendishly. "You can't just say it like that when he's sitting right next to you."

"Oh, um, that is, I—"

The rest of the group bubbled up with laughter and Yuuki scooted closer to Roka, smiling and likely squeezing her hand, Eiichi hoped that was her hand, enticing her join them with a blushed smile.

Suddenly, a rather irked, yet energetic voice sprung up from behind Eiichi.

"What the hell you two?"

The groups stopped and Eiichi turned in his chair. Chie stood behind him, casting her glance from Yuuki to him, and standing behind in her company was Torio, in casual attire again.

"You guys finally decide to meet up and you don't bother inviting us?" she looked angry, but a scan over her output told him she was obviously messing with them.

"Uh, w-well…" Yuuki started. "Wait! How was I supposed to know!?"

"Wait a minute…" Eiichi droned. "So you two just decided to stop in here on a Saturday, when I know this guy has a car," pointing at his brother, "and can take you anywhere around the city."

Chie crossed her arms, grinning, "Well, we _did_ get an invite, even if it wasn't from you two chuckle heads."

Eiichi knew immediately, and turned to face Kotonoha.

"I kind of did…" Koto raised her cell phone into view.

' _Jeez Koto, you could stand to give a heads up_ …'

Yuuki, Roka and Otome had never met Torio, and oddly enough for Chie, she never mentioned him during the times she joined them for lunch, but Eiichi had picked up from her that not only were they dating, but she kept it a secret to surprise everyone. Yuuki was still perplexed to see his sister with a guy, which told Eiichi it had been a while for Chie.

"Hi all, I'm Kuzoka Torio," he bowed casually.

Chie relished in the surprise of the other three at the unexpected relation of the newcomer.

"Wait…" Otome's voice dipped, "You're Eiichi's brother?"

"Yep, live and in the flesh," Torio presented with spread hands.

"I guess I never got to mention I have a brother," Eiichi said.

"No, I just assumed you were raised by wild animals," Otome poked.

"What're you talking about, this is a wild animal," Chie nuzzled the beaming Torio.

' _Thanks for sharing, Chie…_ '

"Eiichi…" Yuuki stared at him blankly, "Your brother is dating my sister…"

Eiichi nodded, "Yeah little brother, that he is…"

To Yuuki and Roka, Torio must have seemed like a giant, being a few inches taller than Eiichi's comfortable five-seven.

There was a rearrangement of seats and Eiichi was scooted to the side of the table, between Yuuki and Koto, while Chie and Torio inserted themselves between Koto and Otome.

"Sorry about the wait Koto-chan," Chie must have informed her she would wait on Torio before arriving.

Eiichi had learned from Roka that the basketball coaches took volunteer members from the senior's team to help coach the second and third year teams. Roka had been Chie's kouhai for the year, so it wasn't odd for her to see Chie visiting during their lunches, but for Otome, Eiichi picked up it had been rather strange for her to be eating with her team captain. Not only that, there had obviously been some tension between them in accordance to Otome's behavior for the past couple months. Chie must have scolded her a few times for slacking off or having a bad attitude. Eiichi had to insert his say once or twice to break off any possible arguments. Though this may have been the case, their time together may have been easing things. Chie was learning to approach Otome less with that authoritative role and a more friendly one.

"Hey Otome! How's it going, girl?" Chie sat next to her.

"Oh, ya know…" Otome said quirkily.

This situation was looking heavy for her, being that she was now a…seventh wheel, and Eiichi wondered if there might be a point where she would get up and leave. If she did, he would excuse himself as well to have a talk with her. Right now, there were so many outputs in his close vicinity, he couldn't make out too much of hers.

Koto had invited Chie and Torio as well. Was this an attempt on her part to—

' _Hey…_ ' she was looking right at him.

Eiichi looked into that pair of dark eyes he had fallen so in love with.

' _Read me and see that I'm not doing this to spite her. I wanted Otome to meet everyone._ '

His face softened up out of its hard expression of pondering.

' _Like I said, you analyze too much_ ,' she slipped her hand into his under the table. ' _She'll come around. She's going to be fine, so stop worrying about her._ '

"Okay…" he eased a smile.

"Kinda' sad you two won't be seeing much of each other for a while with finals," Chie must have noticed their clandestine exchange.

"Oh, Eiichi and I will be studying together, as usual," Koto smiled.

"Uh-oh, that's not promising. With you two love birds locked together in the same room for hours on end, I wonder if any studying will get done."

"It's actually kinda' scary and adorable at the same time," Torio remarked.

"What're you getting at?" Eiichi leered.

"Yeah," Chie asked.

He smiled at the group before continuing, "I knocked one time and found them asleep together under the kotatsu, pencils still in hand…"

Eiichi's face turned beat red and he could sense Koto's embarrassment flaring up as well. In addition, this conjured a flurry of dreamy images from everyone else, straight to Eiichi's inner sight, making him feel the need to adjust his shirt neck.

"Y-You saw that!?" he blurted.

"Wow! No nudity!?" Chie was getting excited.

"So cute…" Roka stared at Eiichi and Koto, making them blush more.

Otome sat quietly, burning up with more affection and discomfort.

"Thankfully, every article of clothing was still intact," Torio smiled.

"That's commitment…" Yuuki looked at them as well.

"Sorry Torio, we'll stick with the living room this time…" Koto's face was still its burning color.

"Well what the heck, we're all here, let's just have study sessions together!" Chie started up.

"Are you sure that's okay sis?" Yuuki asked.

"Yeah, why not? We could all meet at Torio and Eiichi's house! We have enough people, we could keep an eye on each other's progress. And Eiichi, we can take measures to make sure these freshman keep up."

"Hey…" Roka whined.

"My grades are way more stellar than yours!" Yuuki flared.

"I actually like the idea…" Otome said, "I don't really know where I stand with being ready for exams, so I think I could use the help…"

"Don't worry Otome, we got ya covered!" Chie gave a thumbs up. "Torio, you wouldn't mind cooking for us, would you?" she fawned at him.

"It would be my pleasure…" he smiled dreamily, making Eiichi want to gag.

"Okay you two, we're still in public here…" he droned.

"Come on, I need some kind of motivation," Chie smiled at him.

The rantings and wild talk continued.

Eiichi looked at their lively group. The courageous Yuuki, the hopeful Roka, the tenacious Otome, the boisterous Chie, all brought together, to this particular place, in their own special ways.

He realized again, he was happy. Another realization; none of this would have happened, had it not been for her. She planted the seed, she cheered him on, and somehow, they wound up here.

He was beginning to think they would need to make some changes on their trip to Onna beach that summer, but they would be well worth it. He had said he could not promise her they would be alone.

* * *

 **Thank You**

The rustling sounds of plastic wrapping resounded through the empty school hall as Kotonoha and Eiichi walked side by side. Aside from the subtle rustling sounds, the halls were empty, and remotely quiet. Students sat quietly beyond closed, classroom doors, faces buried in exams.

The reason for the rustling, Eiichi carried in his arms a set of three large, woven gift baskets, wrapped in glossy, see through plastic. Inside the baskets were assortments of fine chocolates, teas, coffees, pastries, and creamers. They were complete with white envelopes, displaying imprints of silvery, wistful written messages that spelled, "Thank You", the contents of each envelope included his and her signatures. In Kotonoha's arms, three large bouquets of arranged flowers. White Asiatic lilies, yellow roses, blue delphiniums, and purple Monte Casinos with pedals the color of the sky, displayed from the tops of blue and white plastic. Kotonoha could be seen dipping her nose into the bouquets periodically for a whiff.

"Thanks for helping me out with this," Eiichi smiled at her a little nervously.

"Of course, I'm obligated to, but this is so sweet of you Eiichi. It's wonderful that you want to do this."

"Yeah, I just hope everyone is still in…"

"I think they will be. There are students that let their nerves get to them on days like this. By the way, how do you think you did so far?"

"I'm just happy to have math and science out of the way, I guess I did alright. Now I only have Japanese and history."

"You should do fine on those."

"How about you?"

Kotonoha sighed, "I just have science…"

"Hang in there. I guess neither of us need to worry about Japanese and history, we're a couple of literary scholars."

"Yeah! Yeah we are!"

A burst of chuckles resounded amongst them, though they tried to keep it down to not attract attention.

"Well, here we are…"

Eiichi approached a door and had to work to pull the handle with his already occupied arms. Opening it for Kotonoha, an adorable set of crossed arms, moving legs and flowing hair, she gracefully stepped through, peeking curiously around the room as Eiichi followed behind.

Eiichi never developed a fear of hospitals because the way he saw it, he spent a lot of time in similar places, when he wasn't really in one. Even in his younger years, he had spent much time in the infirmaries of his Primary school and Jr. High. Students and teachers back then believed that he was anemic as opposed to a hypochondriac, because of his age.

Now, looking over the infirmary beds, the white curtains with dim, yellow sunlight shining through windows at the back, desks on either side of the doorway with half filled out forms scattered on their surfaces, plastic bins with medical supplies, and the faint smells of peroxide and rubbing alcohol in the air, a strange feeling washed over him. It was a mix of nostalgia and the familiarity of entering a place he had known so well, and had unexpectedly, not seen in a very long time.

When was the last time he had been here?

There was no one visible at the time, so he stepped next to Kotonoha, who he sensed was getting a similar strange feeling.

"Sensei!" he called out.

There was the sound of footsteps from around a corner that turned to the right, a voice called back, worried.

"Oh Kuzoka-san, don't tell me you got one during an exam!"

By the recognition of his voice, three women in white uniforms stepped out. Of the three, two only looked to be in their mid-thirties, while the oldest, possibly mid-forties.

The tallest had a very mature face with tempting eyes, a head of short, wavy strands, done up and under her cap, and puffy lips with just the right amount of ruby application to give off a flirty appeal, which seemed unfitting for a high school nurse. However, time spent talking with a certain teacher or going out after her shift was not out of the question.

The shortest of the three had a very mild, but warm appeal, short hair of a light brownish-orange hue, and a face that could probably display a smile that would brighten any student's day.

The oldest of the three had a strong, yet still feminine frame, long dark hair, with a wisdom in her gaze that presented an answer for many of life's troubles.

Upon seeing Eiichi and Kotonoha standing before them, bouquets and baskets in hand, at first it appeared they didn't know what to make of the display.

"Please accept these…" he said.

Eiichi stepped to the side and allowed Kotonoha to approach them first with the flowers. They each graciously and without a word, took a bouquet. He waited quietly before doing the same with the gift baskets. Afterward, he stepped back and stood next to Koto.

With somberness in his eyes, he looked at each member as he spoke, trying not to trip over his words, "Kawaguchi-sensei, Takita-sensei, Asari-sensei, you have done your best over these past three years taking care of me, and even when you did not fully understand my condition, you still accepted me…I know I was not the easiest patient to deal with sometimes, but you had patience for me."

Little smiles broke out on their faces at the absentminded pun.

"I've gotten to know each of you well. You each gave me someone to talk to over the years, and I think that was the most healing medicine I could receive. So as a token of my gratitude, these gifts are for you. I know they're not much, but they're what I can do, because each of you did what you could for me. From the bottom of my heart, I am deeply grateful."

On cue, Eiichi and Kotonoha bowed.

There was a rustle of plastic as flowers and baskets were set on the infirmary beds, and the strong one, with Asari on her name tag, approached him as he stood.

"Kuzoka…" she placed her hands on his shoulders, and he found himself gazing timidly back at this wise pair of eyes he had come to know so well, feeling like the prodigal son. "You were never as much trouble as you thought you were, but I remember when you were very bitter towards the world. You wouldn't let anyone in, until you let her in," she gestured to Kotonoha. "I remember when she brought you through that door like she had just found a stray, and since then, I haven't seen you. I was sad as well as delighted. And now look at you two…" she motioned for Kotonoha to join and set a hand on each of their shoulders, "Kotonoha and Eiichi, The Heroes of Sakakino, in our infirmary," she smiled with such glee.

"For a while there, I thought you forgot all about us," the tall one with Kawaguchi on her tag smirked.

"I hope your families are proud of you, because I'm about as proud as a mother of four could be," the mild Takita said, and then looked at Kotonoha, "You know, from the time you two started up together, I don't think he's been in here once."

"Well, there were those times he wound up in the hospital," Kawaguchi pointed to Takita.

"Oh dear, I'm sorry, that is true," Takita agreed, making the two under Asari's hands blush awkwardly.

"Also Eiichi, I'm glad to see you've quit smoking. I never said anything, but I could smell it on you every time you came in here," Kawaguchi poked and Eiichi felt even more awkward.

"Didn't I tell you he would be a handful?" Asari nodded to Kotonoha.

"And he has been ever since," Kotonoha giggled.

"All you two had to do was open your hearts, and now, look at what you've discovered," she brought them closer and wrapped her arms around them, "I pray you two have a happy life together, and I wish you both the best."

Asari stepped away and the other two approached to give their early congratulatory hugs and best wishes. The three nurses then stood looking upon the couple.

Asari spoke again, "I knew it would happen, and your absence was only a sign."

Kotonoha and Eiichi couldn't help holding hands at this.

"Good luck on your exams, I'm sure you'll both do fine. And Kotonoha, when the next year starts up, feel free to stop in anytime."

"Yeah, and I'll teach you some tricks, just in case John McClain here decides to stop a runaway bus," Kawaguchi added.

"Thank you very much. I will." Kotonoha was looking motivated.

The two groups bowed to each other.

The nurses picked up their gifts and carried them to the backroom, talking amongst themselves about the wonderful gesture and of warm thoughts for two of their favorite students, leaving Kotonoha and Eiichi to look around the room before leaving.

Eiichi stepped forward, hands in his pockets and peered at the empty beds and open spaces.

"Where we first met…"

"Well actually, you almost passed out where we first met," a simple expression on Kotonoha's face while jabbing a thumb at the door.

He chuckled, running a hand through his hair, "Yeah, I guess you're right."

"But…" she clasped her hands, musing at the floor, "If I had never returned…we wouldn't be standing here…"

He caught the double meaning in that one.

It had been only half a year ago. He never suspected his life would open up so quickly, just after meeting a girl like her.

He turned, looking around at the infirmary room, knowing it might be his last time seeing it. One look to his favorite bed, it was the one closest to the door, on the left, and the memories came flooding back. He had always used that one when it wasn't already occupied. He remembered days spent writhing in pain before slowly coming to blissful recovery, where he would stare at the speckled ceiling in a relieving calm. It was also where he did some of his most profound thinking. He could even remember Kawaguchi or Takita waking him a few times, when school was over. Kawaguchi had simply poked him in the face a couple times. Something about her output, a certain familiarity, told him he reminded her of some of the guys she dated back in high school, but Takita treated him with a kindness that made him feel like he was another one of her kids.

He looked at Kotonoha, realizing in a funny way, he was her special head case, and she was his. It might have been the nostalgia talking, but she looked like she was standing exactly where she had been on that fateful day in autumn, half a year ago.

He sat on the infirmary bed, in the same place he remembered being. Leaning his head on one hand, elbow against the frame, feigning a wince, he looked up at her with a dim leer.

"Jeez, why does this girl keep showing up and asking questions I can't answer honestly?"

Looking at him peculiarly, Kotonoha then smiled and followed his lead, placing a concerned hand over her chest, "My, who is this strange boy who seems to know so much about me? He even knows what I'm going to say before I say it."

"She's way too troubled and just needs to relax. She should do things her way and stop worrying about others," he grumbled.

"He says crude things and isolates himself from people, but is the only one who approaches me with a kind heart. Could it be that he wants to protect me?"

Not at all like when he last saw her in this place, she was a different Kotonoha, and he was a different Eiichi. He could feel happiness.

Smiles and snickers broke out between the two.

1She stepped over and sat next to him on the bed.

Neither said a word. They just looked at each other.

The visions in his own mind paralleled with hers. They remembered every moment, every tear, all the darkness, pain, confusion and fear, that brought them to this very place in their lives. Their life, together, unfolding, unfaltering, had only just begun.

Their hands intertwined, and they leaned toward each other.

- _When you're weary, feeling small,_

 _When tears are in your eyes, I will dry them all_

 _I'm on your side, when times get rough_

 _And friends just can't be found_

 _Like a bridge over troubled waters, I will lay me down-_

* * *

Over? Not yet.

 **6 Years Later**

2"Onii-chan~, did you want these boxes in the truck?" a much taller, more mature, and well-endowed Kokoro was rummaging about some scattered boxes within Eiichi's room. Her hair that she used to tie into two strands hanging out the sides now hung much longer and was tied back in a ponytail, hanging over a light blue t-shirt and jeans.

The walls in Eiichi's room were mostly blank, say for his dresser, mattress and bed frame, and his desk, which had been wiped bare of all the books and cluttered papers that once sat upon it. His dresser still had a few knick-nacks on its surface, awaiting to be packaged.

"Move what you can Kokoro," a voice called from the hall, "The ones with 'X' on them go to the car. I know you could power a lighthouse with all that energy of yours, but don't try to lift any of the heavy stuff."

As she was rummaging, looking for something that didn't have 'HVY' marked on it, Kokoro's face grew a cad smile as she called back, "Am I going to find anything naughty in here?"

"Nah, your sister and I keep all that locked up with her ero-novels and a few other things."

"TMI Onii-chan, TMI…" Kokoro droned.

There were footsteps from the hall and through the doorway appeared a slightly taller Eiichi, with a little stubble on his chin, wiping sweat from his forehead. Instead of a Sakakino uniform, a black, faded 'Pantera' t-shirt adorned his chest and hung over a pair of denim jeans.

"Man, why did I decide to move in summer? Why does everyone decide to move in summer?"

"Probably because more people can help. I'm helping. Maybe you shouldn't wear dark colors like that," she stood.

"Hey…" he gestured to the shirt, "This is what I had when I got everything packed. You're just dissin' the 'Cowboys from Hell', that's what you're doing," he pointed, feigning disapproval.

Kokoro placed a hand on her hip, "If you are inferring that I don't listen to your scary music, then yes, you are right."

"Kokoro, ' _It's time to chaaange, can't stay the saaame!_ '" he mimicked a shrieking voice.

"No, no it's not Onii-chan…please stop singing…"

He clenched a fist, "' _Reeevolution is my naaame!_ '"

"You're name is Eiichi, please don't forget this as you continue with your life…"

"Okay fine, I guess it's an acquired taste after all…"

" _Bleeeh!_ " Kokoro teased with the most vicious face she could conjure, sticking her tongue out while throwing up a pair of horns on one hand.

" _Ahhhh!_ " Eiichi made a similar vicious face while spreading out bony, malevolent hands with fingers to the ceiling.

The goofy pair passed vicious expressions back and forth before chuckling at their ridiculousness.

Eiichi continued to meander, looking for a heavy box.

"But seriously, you're not wearing that to the beach are you?"

"Well, it's not a bad repellent. I have to do something to keep wandering eyes off me."

Kokoro rolled her eyes.

"But no, I'm gonna' don the pasty, touristy button up, before we leave," not willing to admit he liked it.

"I think that look better suits you."

Eiichi shook his head and peeked at some larger boxes toward the back of the group, "When you find one that's light enough, set it outside the truck. We want to get all the heavy stuff on the bottom first."

"Okay," Kokoro had abandoned her duty for the moment and was poking around Eiichi's dresser.

"I can't get that song out of my head now…' _I— can't help the way I aaam~_ '"

Kokoro cupped her hands over her ears, "La-la-la-la-la!"

Eiichi chuckled, "So you're done for the summer, huh?" he began tugging on a medium sized, yet heavy box.

"Yeah, finals were good. I got mostly A's."

"Solid. I'm sure it's going to be nice, starting up as a second year. You've got a set of friends, you know where everything is…"

"Yeah, it's alright," her simple response.

"You're starting to sound like me."

"Never in a million years will I sound like you, Onii."

Eiichi chuckled, "Be careful, I tend to grow on people."

"Onii-chan…what's this?"

When he looked up, he saw that Kokoro had grabbed an item of his dresser that held a lot of nostalgic value to him. She had turned and stood holding it in her hand, and for a moment, she didn't look like the Kokoro she was now. She was much shorter, her hair was different, and the bright eyes had lost their glimmer.

Her output was that of curiosity and subtle confusion. She probably recognized it in her subconscious, but could not make out why.

Burlap string that had been woven together into a circular bracelet hung around her fingers. It had been tied into a bow, with paper sunflowers and two ladybug ornaments.

"Lemme' see…" he waved her over.

Kokoro stepped around some boxes and handed him the bracelet.

He went over to his blank mattress and sat down, Kokoro followed him and sat next to him, like she had done many times before when she had allowed him a place in her life.

He held the bracelet in his left hand, which had a gold band on one finger, and stared at it for a long time. The bracelet had accumulated dust from hanging on his wall for so many years. He had set it aside with some other trinkets to be packed into a smaller box.

"You don't remember this?" he looked at her.

"Can't say I do."

She was much older now, and any turmoil she suffered back then had been long forgotten through better times.

He smiled and held the bracelet between the two of them, his voice very wistful, "When you were ten years old, you gave this to me. You were going through a really rough time, and I took it as a promise to always remain true to your sister. You even thanked me, which at the time, was something I never thought I'd hear from you."

"Was I angry at you for something?" she asked curiously.

He chuckled, "In a manner of speaking. To me, it was as good as any wedding vow."

"I think you're being too sentimental…" she raised an eyebrow.

He laughed this time, "Maybe I was, but a lot happened back then. It's hard to not get sentimental…"

"Well, thank you for keeping it, but I don't know if I'll understand that."

"Maybe you'll understand if you can ever get that Shintaro guy to come out of his little shell and ask you out."

"Shut-up Onii!"

Eiichi laughed, "Having him over for dinner wasn't a good way to keep things hidden from me. You should find ways to spend more time with him, he'll get the message."

"Does he like me too?"

"Uh, I dunno'…" he made a doltish face.

Kokoro shoved him, "Come on Onii-chan, I know you can tell."

"Yeah, but if I did, that would be cheating."

"That's not fair, and you know it!"

He snickered, "Hey, if you can't spot the signs, you need to work on that."

"Whatever…" she got up, a little peeved, and grabbed two stacked boxes, "Fine, I'll ask him out, and that'll show you."

"That's the spirit!" he grinned and swung a hearty fist.

With another roll of the eyes and shake of her head, Kokoro proceeded out of the door with the boxes.

Eiichi stood and got to work on lifting the heavy one he had picked.

It was still late morning, around ten, on a Saturday and Kokoro had gotten a limo ride over to help Eiichi move.

At the bottom of the stairwell there was a bright summer shine coming from their wide open front door. Carefully making his way down the steps after Kokoro, the voices of Koto and Torio could be heard from below.

"Okay…so in a few minutes?…alright…see you soon…"

Koto was standing just outside the kitchen overlook in a thin, white, flower print dress that was so thin, Eiichi could make out the light blue bikini she had on underneath. He also knew she had a wide brimmed, straw hat that went perfectly with it. He made it down just in time to see her set the phone down.

"Oh boy…" she muttered, leaning her hands on the kitchen overlook, one with a gold band as well, and a glimmering rock.

"What?" Torio asked from the kitchen. He was taking bags of snack foods out of grocery bags and putting them into a box.

"You're going to have some explaining to do when they get here, Roka's not happy."

"I was sure to tell everyone."

"Well apparently you mixed something up, because she's saying it was too last minute. I'm just glad I got it across last night, but she still freaked."

"Well I've kind of had my hands full here."

"Don't shoot the messenger," Koto raised her hands. "I'm just giving you a heads up, Hurricane Roka is on her way."

"Ah, son of a…" Torio exhaustedly set a bag of chips in the box.

"You know how she gets Torio," Eiichi said from his place near the stairs, still holding the box. "When she's pissed, there's almost no stopping her."

"You mean kinda' like you?"

"Hey, I'm not the one in her cross hairs," Eiichi chuckled and continued out the already open door.

"Oh yeah, Chie said she had to grab a few things, but she should be here shortly too," Koto said.

"At least there's some good news in the mix," Torio brightened up.

Outside the Kuzoka residence, there was a small moving truck parked in front of the driveway. A ways down the sidewalk from the truck was the Katsura family limo and its driver, Amaya. In the driveway, sitting next to Torio's dark blue S2000 Honda was a price friendly, silver 2002 Corolla, proudly owned by Eiichi himself, as well as the custom 1200cc Sportster, with gray paint over black hardware, sitting inside the open garage, a college graduation present to himself.

Both Torio and Eiichi's vehicles sat with trunks open, a few traveling necessities already loaded.

Eiichi walked past Kokoro as she was headed back in to get more boxes. He loaded his into the truck, and stopped to have a smoke and a chat with Amaya, until Kokoro came back out with Torio and Kotonoha, who were carrying more boxes for the cars. Kokoro complained he was slacking off, which sent him on his way back inside when a white Toyota Highlander appeared from down the street and pulled up behind the moving truck.

The driver and passenger side doors popped open. Roka appeared from the passenger side, looking as agitated as she could be.

"Dammit Torio!" she flung the door shut, her khaki pants and sandals began marching toward him furiously, "I asked you two weeks ago when the correct day would be, and you didn't give me a straight answer— _shut up Eiichi!—_ I had to call in last night to get them to switch the schedules!"

Eiichi had been approaching to neutralize the matter, but backed away when Roka viciously thrust a finger in his direction without paying him a glance. With displaced nodding to her demand and an unvoiced 'Okay, fine…', he paced away from the confrontation. Koto and Kokoro merely stood by, Koto slightly amused with the display of friendly bickering, and Kokoro not really sure what to make of the situation.

"Sorry, sorry," the nearly six foot Torio raised defensive hands to his pint sized antagonist, "We've been really busy getting things set up with the move."

Roka growled with shaking fists, "Then why didn't you say so in the first place!? You could've had Koto-chan tell everyone, that's what she wound up doing anyways!…"

While Roka gripped in the background, Eiichi and Yuuki approached each other by Torio's car. Yuuki and Roka's heights had not changed much over the years, say for a few inches. However, Yuuki had changed his look significantly, to a pair of rectangular, rimless frames that made him appear less like a computer technician, and more like a really short model. To add to his more laid back style, he was ready to go with sandals, cargo swim shorts and an open button up over a tee-shirt.

"She been like this all day?" Eiichi nodded in Roka's direction

With a sigh, Yuuki looked, "Yeah, she ran into trouble getting time off from work too. We almost wouldn't have made it."

"I guess she didn't want to calm down until she let 'em have it."

"Sorry if this is causing you any trouble."

Eiichi had been touching his forehead, "Nah, you think she'd remember though. What's your situation?"

"I had the same problem, but I'm in good with my boss. He actually stops in once in a while to talk with the guys, he even took us out for drinks a few times."

"Wow, working for a publisher isn't so bad."

"Not when you work for mine."

Eiichi looked over to the ongoing rant, "Well, you better get over there before she breaks something."

"Alright," Yuuki adjusted his glasses before leaving to join his sweetheart.

"First you said it was next week, and I had to find out from Koto-chan we were leaving today! I barely had time to pack!" Roka flared with clenched fists.

"Okay, okay, I'll remember next time," Torio floundered.

"You better!"

"Hey, hey…" Yuuki smoothed a hand over Roka's arm.

"Uh!" her head turned to him and blushed, aware now of her erratic outburst. "I'm sorry…" she mumbled, lowering her eyes.

"I know…" a delicate finger brushed a strand of hair over her ear, "I'm pretty excited too."

She raised a hand and set it on his shoulder, stepping closer, "It's just, we do this every year, and I didn't want us to miss it."

While Eiichi watched from his spot, he got the imagery of taking an ice cube and setting it on top of a lit match, " _Tss_ …"

Yuuki tipped his head forward, peeking at her, "Don't worry, we're here now. Torio just got his wires crossed, that's all. We've all been pretty busy."

"Yeah…"

"Have I ever told you how cute you are when you get angry?"

"Might as well say it every day," she smiled, seeming not to mind that others heard this.

Roka looked at Torio, "I'm sorry Torio. You guys have been busy."

"That's alright, I should have asked if you guys wanted to help. We still have more to do after we get back Friday, so why don't you help us over the weekend? We could have a moving party."

"Yeah, that would be good…"

"I like that," Yuuki agreed.

She turned and called to Eiichi, who was keeping his distance, "Sorry Eiichi."

"It's all good," he raised a hand.

"We're going to help Koto move out next week too, so when you can find time…" said Torio.

"Well, I'm pretty sure we don't have anything planned," Roka looked at Yuuki.

"The gym hasn't been scheduling you for weekends, right?" he asked.

"Well, even if that happens, I can still make it when I'm off."

Yuuki looked at Torio, "We'll be there."

Just then, another vehicle, a silvery blue Acura Integra pulled in and parked itself in front of the moving truck. The driver side door popped open and Chie appeared, looking over to the group through a pair of shades.

"Alright, block party!" she smiled while grabbing her satchel purse.

Everybody waved and Torio fled to say hello while Eiichi rejoined the group after the air had cleared.

"Are Otome and Hidetora going to make it?" Roka asked Koto.

"Yes, but Otome is picking up Hidetora from the recording studio. They're going to meet us at that one bookstore that's on the way, after we leave."

"Hidetora's been really excited lately," Eiichi added. "He's almost done with his album and keeps sending me updates. We've been planning a trip to celebrate."

"Where are you guys going this time?" Yuuki asked.

"We were thinking about taking Koto, Otome and the bikes down to Lake Biwa for a camping trip, but I have no idea how that guy rides without his glasses."

"Doesn't seem to bother Otome," Yuuki remarked.

"Maybe he uses contacts," Roka said.

"Yeah, maybe…" Eiichi mused, "If he decides to satellite us with that low rider of his all the way to Shimoda, I'm going to be so jealous…"

"Yeah, but we're carrying the coolers," Koto said.

"Yeah…"

"Nothing like bike envy," Yuuki cracked.

Eiichi followed it up with a smirk, "You implying something?"

Koto had naturally been uneasy, riding with Eiichi on the back of his v-twin the first few times, but had built up a tolerance for it. She enjoyed feeling the wind whip her hair around from below the helmet, and resting her head on his back. She still worried sometimes when he took off on it though.

"I'm sorry we're not going to Onna beach like before, Eiichi. I know you and Koto really liked that place," Roka said.

"Ah, that's okay. Shimoda is beautiful, and it'll take us less time and money to get there…"

While they were talking, Koto had noticed Chie and Torio remained happily where they were and decided to walk over and greet Chie. She approached the two as they were talking amongst themselves while leaning against Chie's car. She overheard what they were discussing and decided to throw her piece in.

"Roka and Torio had a minor dispute with the scheduling, but everything sorted itself out."

"Aw, was my kouhai giving you trouble?" Chie teased Torio.

"Just a minor misunderstanding, my bad."

"Have you been able to get everything pulled together?" Koto asked.

Chie and Torio looked at each other.

"They had you on snack duty?"

"They had me on everything duty."

"Eiichi still packing?"

"Yeah, but he's getting there. You got everything?"

"Towels, suit, clothes, bathroom stuff—"

"You didn't forget the Cake?"

"Oh, never forget the Cake. Are the coolers packed?"

"Soda, juice, beer and two five gallons. You got the thirty SPF?"

"I got the twenty, the thirty doesn't let me tan."

"That's good."

"Good."

They looked at Koto, "We're good."

Koto blinked at them and began walking back over to Eiichi, hearing the two behind her snickering.

"Eiichi…" she muttered in a bothered tone and he turned to her, "It freaks me out every time they do that…"

Eiichi looked over at the couple still conversing by the car.

"I'm not too sure myself, but I think they're messing with you. It could be rehearsed…I think…"

Yuuki, Roka, and Kokoro helped Eiichi move some more boxes into the truck, and when they were done, it was half an hour to noon. Then the four decided to take the truck over to the new house, which was actually a condo spaced evenly between the two universities where Koto and Eiichi were attending.

"Figure we'll be back before one," Eiichi said to the three being left to watch the house. "I've got everything packed, so we can leave shortly after that."

Yuuki and Roka hopped back in the Highlander, while Kokoro and Eiichi took the truck.

Kokoro plugged her phone into the auxiliary and the upbeat computer sounds of pop music, pasty computer noises to Eiichi's ears, filled the cab.

"Hey, I'm the one driving," he complained.

"Payback's a mother," she grinned.

"Jeez. So are you sure you don't wanna' come with?"

"No, I'm leaving with friends to go to the family beach house. Plus, I don't want to cramp your guys' style."

"What's there to cramp?" he shifted into drive and pulled out.

"One high school student and bunch of college kids. It'll look like you're babysitting."

"I don't know, Roka n' Yuuki look like they're still in high school."

"Onii-chan," she scolded.

"Alright, alright…"

* * *

That afternoon, Yuuki's Highlander pulled back in front of the Kuzoka residence with Eiichi and Kokoro in the back, after Eiichi had dropped off the moving truck. Everyone climbed out and made their way inside.

Chie, Koto and Torio were all talking in the living room, Chie and Torio having already helped themselves to an afternoon beer. Eiichi went to the fridge and grabbed three more, along with a soda for Kokoro.

Torio and Chie had been discussing with Koto matters involving the move.

"So after we get you and Eiichi settled, I'm going to get started moving in here," Chie said.

"You're not selling the house?" Roka asked.

"Not yet," Torio said, "we're going to give it a while before we decide on a place. I'm thinking we'll turn Eiichi's room into storage or some other thing."

"Oh thanks," Eiichi snapped.

"Hey Eiichi," Yuuki called his attention while he was opening the beverages, "I wanted to go over that last chapter you sent me. The one where Ryun appears just before Yoshinaka gets shot."

"Okay, what did you find?" Eiichi asked while handing Roka and Yuuki their beers.

"The arrangement is good, there's just a paragraph or two that need a little more flair to them. Also, I wanted to know if you'd let me work on Toshi's character more in the next chapter, I think I could give her a little more appeal."

"Yeah sure, I was getting the feeling she was just fading into the background."

"If we can get this into my company before the end of the year, we might have a shot at something," Yuuki grinned.

Eiichi, grinning as well, raised his beer, "Publishing contract, here we come. Kanpai."

"Kanpai."

A drink to their hopeful success.

Yuuki continued, "Hey, I know a guy that works in graphics design who can hook us up with a cover. He's a good artist too. Would you be up to have a sit down with him?"

"I don't see why not, sounds promising."

"I even have some of his stuff on my phone here," Yuuki took out his Samsung.

While Eiichi and Yuuki discussed their future prospects, the rest of the group were continuing their discussion.

"Torio, so what's it like being a head chef?" Kokoro asked.

Torio laughed, "Well I'm not yelling at everyone, if that's what you think. Culinary school helped me out big time and it's been a dream working at Maunten Kasai. I was really blown away when I found myself serving the Katsura family though," with a look from Kokoro to Koto.

"It was just as fantastic as when you made dinner for the wedding," said Koto, "Dad looked you up and said we just had to pay you a visit."

"Well I was absolutely surprised, and grateful. Anything your dad says in a tabloid would make business spike."

"So what about you Eiichi, how are things in criminal psychology?" Roka asked.

"Well, I don't want to ruin anyone's appetite…" the group suddenly felt uneasy at this, and he could tell, with some amusement. "Homicide has been looking into this case where a guy supposedly murdered his business associate. The detective I'm working with had me question him personally because he wasn't getting anywhere. There's certain information I can't divulge, but I'm going to say for now, the guy is innocent," there was no 'likely', 'probably' or 'may be', this was something only Eiichi could be certain of. "I've been going over the crime scene photos with Asako-san. She agrees with me, she's noticed a few things that don't add up."

"Wow that is exciting…" Chie said in one breath. "It sounds like the beginning of an action movie."

"You get to carry a badge and a gun too, huh?" Kokoro asked with pride for her gifted brother-in-law, though she already knew this.

"Well yeah," Eiichi was admittedly charmed by the question, "Only when the detective and I go to question persons of interest, but not often," looking to Koto, who was worried by the thought.

When the conversation veered away from Eiichi, Yuuki nudged him with his beer, "Oh yeah, there was something else I was hoping I could talk to you about…" Yuuki glanced cautiously over to Roka before motioning for Eiichi to follow him upstairs.

Yuuki led Eiichi up to his own room and made sure the door was closed most of the way, peeking out through the crack before turning and fishing in his pockets.

"I know you're not gonna' be that surprised…" Yuuki said.

Eiichi had been picking up hints of anxiousness every time he saw Yuuki look at Roka today, which was odd for him, given how comfortable they had been over the past few years.

When Yuuki withdrew his hand, there was small ring box in it.

"I'm gonna' do it," Yuuki stared back, fuming with determination.

Eiichi took a big, hissy breath of air as a broad smile spread out over his cheeks, "My little brother!"

He raised a hand that Yuuki responded to unintentionally with his own, forgetting the box was still in it. Eiichi's hand clapped over it and he pulled Yuuki into a gruff embrace, having to kneel down a little so the bottle in his other hand didn't hit the back of Yuuki's head.

"She's going to say yes, man! I just know it!" Eiichi said excitedly.

"Well of course you do," Yuuki said, his chin elevated so his face wasn't pressing into Eiichi's shoulder, "Having you around is like having a cheat sheet."

"Three years after graduation. It took you a while, but you're finally gonna' do it."

"Yeah well, I didn't want to graduate and then have marriage staring us in the face. I guess I lost track of time."

"Understandable, that's what happens when you're content with someone…Ah man, I'm gonna' have another sister!" Eiichi hugged tighter, Yuuki began taping his beer against his emotional cohort's back, signaling he couldn't breathe. "Roka's gonna' be my sister!"

"She might as well be. We're not related, remember?"

"Thicker than blood man…"

There were footsteps outside the door and the sound of voices.

"We still have to move the bed and dresser, but—"

As the door swung open, Eiichi and Yuuki scrambled, just as Koto and Roka's frozen, perplexed faces appeared, Koto's hand still on the knob.

The two looked around uncomfortably, Eiichi scratching his chin stubble, Yuuki gazing very interestedly into the neck of his bottle, with his other arm behind his back.

Eiichi fidgeted, "Ahm, we weren't in here huggin' or anything. We were just talkin' _man stuff_ , ain't that right Yuuki?"

"Yeah! Sports!" Yuuki raised his head and blurted.

The wife and wife-to-be stared at their male counterparts a few more seconds with slightly parted lips before taking their leave.

"I will never understand those two…" Koto's voice sounded.

"They're on a wavelength I don't even want to understand…" Roka responded.

Eiichi and Yuuki stared out the door after they'd left.

"We pulled that off…" Eiichi assured.

"Yeah…" Yuuki said nervously.

Still watching the doorway, they nonchalantly clinked their bottles together and took a swig.

"Where are you gonna' do it?"

"I was thinking on the beach, tomorrow evening, if no one is around."

"She'll understand when you pop the question."

On their way back downstairs, Eiichi was getting a little anxious about the time.

"Alright everybody, we have to get going soon or we won't make it until five or six."

"Eiichi, come here!" Koto appeared, seeming to have completely forgotten the bizarre situation, which Eiichi would explain to her later, and was suddenly very excited about something, flapping her hand for him to follow, "Kokoro found something you have to check out."

Curiously, Eiichi and Yuuki followed Koto over to where everyone was grouped together in the living room, near the coffee table. As Eiichi got closer, he saw them all standing behind Kokoro, who was holding a thin, hardcover book she had pulled out of a box he left sitting near the entertainment center. It had a black finish, was really dusty, and very familiar to him.

Koto took his hand and led him around to the back of the group, where Torio and Chie made a space for him and her to see.

One the pages were pictures of the class of 2008. Black and white images of students seated at library tables, or standing around and talking inside classrooms.

"Oh look! There's little Roka!" Kokoro swooned.

"Hey!"

"There's Hurricane Roka," Eiichi smiled.

A picture of the Sakakino basketball team, with Roka, the shortest of them all, up front with the team captain Chie, standing right next to her faithful kouhai.

"You were smokin' in that jersey," Torio said.

"You do like to see me being all sporty," Chie smirked.

"Yuuki, I didn't know you had such big glasses!" Kokoro had turned the page, displaying a picture of Yuuki toting a stack of books with other members of the library crew working in the background.

"Wow, those made me look even younger," said Yuuki.

"Yep, he was my awkward little bookworm," Roka clutched him close.

"Man, I remember back when you hated me," Eiichi said.

Yuuki chuckled, "Yeah, and you knew all along."

Kokoro turned the page and there were two particular images that drew their interest. One was of Koto and Eiichi, seated at a library table, Koto with a pencil in hand and a fixed gaze on homework assignments, and Eiichi with a history text book in his hands.

"Oh…my…" Eiichi didn't let himself finish.

"You guys look so cute," Roka said.

"Wow, Eiichi studying, there's a first," Torio cracked.

"He had to meet an angel like Koto-chan before any of that happened," Chie followed up.

"I'm surprised you got away with wearing your uniform that way," Kokoro said.

"Well, they complained enough about it," Eiichi said.

"And look at the text," Chie pointed. "'Our Heroes hard at work', isn't that just adorable!?"

Eiichi remembered being relieved that Noda had tossed aside her odd titles for a more affirmative one.

"Yeah, I'm sure Asako-san wrote that. She was the same one who took the photo. I can still remember that flash-bang of a camera she had," he felt Koto shiver next to him and captured her own memory of losing over fifty percent of her sight for a couple seconds.

The other picture, the one that Koto wanted him to see the most, was of her and him against a bookshelf background. Koto had her books clutched in both hands in front of her skirt with a pleasant smile. Eiichi had his arm around her with the cad, wolfish grin he was known for, their heads touching. The text underneath read 'The Heroes of Sakakino'.

"Wow…" Kokoro uttered, "You guys were hot!"

"What do you mean _were_?" Koto gripped a little sibling rivalry.

Eiichi wrapped his arm over her shoulders, just like he did in the photo and planted a kiss on her cheek, "You're just as hot as you ever were."

She responded with raising a hand to his and intertwining their fingers, their rings close.

Eiichi sighed, "Back in the day…"

"Yeah…" Koto replied.

They had all grown up, passing through life's bitter boundaries to pursue their ambitions, to learn more of themselves and each other, time being the strict overseer of youth.

"You guys had such eventful lives at Sakakino, I only hope mine are as interesting…" Kokoro mused.

Eiichi set a hand on her shoulder and she looked up at him.

"It's only what you make of it. You just do what Kokoro does, and you'll do fine," he smiled.

"Thanks Onii…"

Kokoro closed up the past and placed it back in the box to be observed for another day. Then she patted her hands against her hips, "Well, I guess I should be going, I need to be up bright n' early to meet everyone at the train station."

"You're right, and we should've been gone like an hour ago," Yuuki checked his phone.

Kokoro grabbed her messenger bag that she left by the couch and slung it over her head. Everyone gave her a goodbye hug.

"Go out there and get yourself a surfer guy," were Chie's parting words.

Kokoro laughed, "I'll try."

"Go make some memories," Eiichi said.

And again, she said, "Thanks Onii…"

After more hugs and warm partings, Kokoro took her leave, waving and responding to calls from the front door all the way to the limo.

"See you next week!" Yuuki called.

"Have fun!" Roka called.

"Kokoro, be careful, kay?" Koto called.

"I will, bye Onee! Bye everyone!" she disappeared into the limo and her guardians watched Amaya drive up the street and around the corner.

"You've got a great sister Koto-chan," Chie said.

"I know…"

"Well, I guess we should get going as well," said Torio.

"Lemme' change and grab my bag," said Eiichi.

"Good, that means you get to lock up," Torio smirked.

Eiichi rushed up the stairs and into his room. He got changed and grabbed his keys off the dresser, but when he turned, he saw his duffel sitting on the floor by the bed, with the dusty bracelet of rugged, woven threads laying on it. He must have set it there unintentionally.

He picked it up and stared at it again. He touched the ring on his left hand, then tenderly placed the bracelet back on his dresser, to be packed in the car with him and Koto when they got back.

3When he came down the stairwell, Koto was waiting for him, in her white dress and straw hat, the open door behind her revealing the cars outside, ready to roll under a bright afternoon sun.

"Shall we?" she extended her hand with a smile.

He took it, "Let's."

 **THE END**

1 "Bridge Over Troubled Waters" by Black Label Society

2 "For Word" by Craig D'Andrea

3 "Grady Fernando Comes to Town" by Solas


	16. Author's Note

**Author's Note "The Victory Lap"**

So there you have it, I've successfully turned School Days into Clannad. XD ^_^

A special thanks to Willgm, christian a lebron1, kyrie-lie, Kame Rider Chrome, Radioactive Samurai, zergdramon, Student A, Midnightsn0w, The Blond Writer, and War-Torn Hero for reviewing these stories, favoriting, following and being so supportive. And a special shout out to sachi48 for inspiring me to write this extension. I don't know where you are sachi, but I hope you're reading. Drop me a line sometime.

Like I said before, no bloodshed, a little sweat, and apparently a lot of tears. I don't think I've written so many cry scenes into a story before. I guess you could say Eiichi has a very cry…into-able…chest? The girls just can't resist, much to Koto's frustration. And hopefully some laughs on your part. I was laughing, quite a bit.

I did not think this thing would turn out so long. This became a 200 page novel! I was just going for romance/humor/slice of life, but damn…

I hope you guys enjoyed seeing Kotonoha and Eiichi in a brighter light and growing strong together. If I had my way, and both stories were made into an anime offshoot of the series, I'd want to create an AMV montage of all the goofy scenes, with "I Believe" by Stephen Bennett as the theme.

I understand that a lot of you were more interested in the situation with Otome and Taisuke, and may have been expecting more explosiveness with the story, and I'm sorry if I disappointed you, but I did say before that this was going to be more laid back. The main focus was Koto and Eiichi bringing Roka and Yuuki together, with Otome and Taisuke adding a little suspense. If I wanted to create a more devastating plot, I would have probably added in a few more antagonists and had some things happen that would make drastic changes, and not for the good. I'm satisfied with how it turned out. It was more heartwarming and funny to me, which is what I aimed for.

Kotonoha & Eiichi

These two, ha-ha! Oh man these two. I had so much fun writing them. They were, to me, the ideal relationship. Every relationship is different, but take away the trials they faced, take away their habits and quirks, and you have two devoted people, who just want to take care of each other. The perfect contrast to what we've seen with a lot of the characters from the twelve episode canon. In my opinion, that is how it should be. Could I have worked with Kotonoha being Eiichi's girl and still being her timid self, likely, and I would have found ways to make that funny as well, but not after everything I put them through, including what she already experienced in the original series. That shit changes people, no matter how you look at it. In this, I depicted Kotonoha as strong and confident, but still an introvert, who likes her own way of doing things and doesn't mind being alone. She's gentle and kind hearted most of the time, but when she's around Eiichi, she knows how to let loose and express herself more, because he's special to her. For Eiichi, it looks like being around Koto brought out his trust. For someone who always knows when people are lying, it must be tough. She also gave him stability, but I guess they gave each other more of that. She taught him how to let out more of his soft side and not be the hardheaded vagrant all the time.

Yuuki & Eiichi

I had a lot of fun with these two. It was like the team that I didn't see coming until when I first learned about Yuuki, and then it clicked in my head. They're polar opposites, but their virtues are the same, so they work perfectly together. To me, Yuuki is seriously like the younger brother that Eiichi never had. I have to admit, these two were really rough starting out. I had to break them up a few times because they kept winding up in fist fights, and I'm not kidding. One night I was in my den, halfway through a scene. I had everything planned out well in my head, things were going smoothly, so I decided to take a break and get another beer. I walk back in and they're at each other's throats - "I leave you two alone for five minutes!" "He started it!" Maybe I should lay off the whiskey and Irish music when I write. I really wanted to write a fight between them, but I also wanted to see if I could get through this one without any of that. Plus a fight would've taken away some of the lines I wanted to put in and some humor as well. A good fight would clear the air though, and I'm sure they wind up in one somewhere down the road. Eiichi is the better fighter, but Yuuki is a tough little bastard, and if he could get a good tackle in on Eiichi, he'd give him a run for his money. However, I can also see them sharing a drink at Wolf Man's Sushi Bar after working hard on a manuscript, as writer and editor.

Roka & Yuuki

I really wish these two could have gotten more time together as a couple in this, but things were obviously coming to a close. It was pretty obvious it was going to happen. These two are just adorable together, and as they mature more, Yuuki knows all the right buttons to push to defuse the Roka bomb.

Chie & Torio

These two sort of just happened. It did not cross my mind until I was writing the scene when Eiichi suggested it. I can't believe I didn't see it before, but I love how you find little surprises like that while you write. It really helped to create this little trio of couples, all tied together in one way or another. As I've shown, because these two are so much alike, it's like they operate on this 'other level' where they communicate so well it's scary.

Otome - _"Mrs. Rita" by Gin Blossoms_ -

Ah…Otome…I knew she would come around. What we have here folks, is the classic 'bully becomes best friends with their former prey' scenario, and it's a personal favorite of mine. There's nothing like burying the hatchet after a good fight. I guess I got a little attached to Otome after Eiichi foiled her plans with the 'rest area'. And after learning more about her home life, not to mention how she felt about Makoto having his way with her and then tossing her aside with the rest, I realized this was a spirit that needed saving (" _And then you really might know what it's like…what it's like…_ " _\- Everlast)_. I didn't like her in canon, but writing this helped me to learn she just needed better influences in her life. I know I've said that I want to take a break from this fandom in the past, and I am, but I've recently conjured some more plans for Otome in her very near future as a second year. I'm looking at a short story featuring Otome and a certain someone who was mentioned in this final chapter, and how she discovered a love that was more wholesome and rewarding. She's just now learning to reveal her tender side through being around her new set of kind, ragtag friends. I think they're going to show her more of what she was missing in her life. - _"Is she comin' 'round for me once again? Around, or was that the endin'?_ _I just hope she's comin' 'round again."_ -

I know I went pretty slice of life with this one and I hope I was able to keep it interesting. I love slice of life anime, they're pretty much what I mostly watch, but I know they can be dull for some folks. I've written a human interest only once in my career, and that was years ago, so I hope my ability hasn't grown weak in that area. I plan on writing several different types of manga/anime in the future, slice of life being one of them.

Man writing this was fun, but I am tired and I'm looking forward to taking a long rest and giving my creativity gland a break. I definitely need to take a break from this fandom for a while. For now, I'm going to kick back, open an Oktoberfest, and read some of your guys' stories, as well as get started on my Fall anime lineup. My favorite season, autumn, is here, and I have a lot to look forward to with that.

If I could pick a theme song(s) for Eiichi, my first choice would be Tool's "Lateralus":

" _Black then white are all I see in my infancy/red and yellow then came to be, reaching out to me, lets me_ _ **see**_ _/As below, so above and beyond, I imagine/drawn beyond the lines of reason/_ _ **Push the envelope**_ _, watch it bend—(2:32)_ _ **Over thinking, over analyzing separates the body from the mind/Withering my intuition, missing opportunities and I must/Feed my will to feel my moment drawing way outside the lines**_ _—(7:16)With my feet upon the ground_ _ **I move myself between the sounds**_ _and open wide to suck it in/I feel it move across my skin/I'm reaching up and reaching out/I'm reaching for the random or what ever will bewilder me/what ever will bewilder me…_ " I can just see Eiichi placing his fingers on his temples and a transparent third eye materializing over his forehead. The others would be "Vortex Mind" and "In the Fading Light" by Andy James.

Soundtrack (hehe):

"Faith's Waltz"; "C is Chloe" - Stephen Bennett (Chpt 1)

"The Path of the Traveller" - Owen Van Larkins: This one really brought out the emotions for me in chapter two. Kokoro may have not been around for all the horror, but she didn't need to be, she witnessed it through her sister. (Chpt 2)

"Puzzles" - Craig D'Andrea (Chpt 3)

"Stomp" - Owen Van Larkins: For some reason this one sounds like something you would end an evening television show with while they're rolling credits. I guess that's why I threw it in, because Eiichi was watching an evening show. (Chpt 3)

"Sliabh Gal Cua/Kishor's Tune" - Tony McManus: I usually listening to this and imagine traveling [through the craggy regions of Scotland or the rolling hills of Ireland], but it made for a good piece during the conversation between Roka and Eiichi. (Chpt 4)

"Irene Meldrum's Welcome to Bon Accord" - Tony McManus: The same goes for this one, only I imagine a sunset/sunrise in a castle courtyard or through a row of trees at the edge of a forest, but it sounded good for Eiichi's resolution to Roka's problem. (Chpt 4)

"Cuach Mo Lon Dubh Bui"; "Roaring Waters" - Altan, "The Crows of Killimer/Box Reel #2/Boys of Malin/The Opera House" - Solas (Chpt 5)

"Born to Raise Hell" - Motorhead: Yuuki's plans coming into full swing, hehehe (Chpt 6)

"No More Mr. Nice Guy" - Megadeth (Alice Cooper Cover): Definitely a good theme for Yuuki. (Chpt 6)

"Bella's Song" - Andy James: This song is for my OC Manami. (Chpt 7)

"Desperate Fishwives" - Old Blind Dogs: Roka's tears. (Chpt 7)

"Jacob's Ladder" - Chimp Spanner: I threw this in for the flashbacks Eiichi had because the song itself is a flashback to the old story for me. (Chpt 8)

"Sir Steven Huska of Bryce Canyon" - Old Blind Dogs: I could totally hear this while Yuuki and Eiichi were learning more and more about how much they each had in common through their kind reconciliation with each other. (Chpt 8)

"What Goes Around - My Name is Earl Theme" - Nescobar-a-lop-lop: Haha, so when I wrote the scene with Eiichi telling Yuuki he was going to get him to confess to Koto, I had _My Name is Earl_ running through my head, because Earl usually ends up doing ridiculous stuff like that. (Chpt 8)

"I Believe" - Stephen Bennett: This is mainly for Yuuki's goofy, failed confession, but I could also see it for a compilation AMV of all the ridiculous scenes I had lined up in this extension. (Chpt 9)

"99 Ways to Die"; "Skin O' My Teeth" - Megadeth: Don't piss off Kotonoha. (Chpt 9)

"Koto" - Hunter Van Larkins: I couldn't help it. I've known this song for two years now and completely forgot about it, and after listening, I figured it fit with Kotonoha's soothing nature, and how she always raises Eiichi's spirits. (Chpt 9)

"Shinmiri" - Kikuya Tomoki (Hidamari Sketch OST): Oh yeah! Date time for Koto and Eiichi. (Chpt 10)

"Honey" - Van Larkins: I'm sure this is how Yuuki was feeling after Roka kissed him. (Chpt 11)

"Neanderthal" - Kaki King (Chpt 12)

"Skimming the Fractured Surfaces to a Place of Endless Light" Kaki King: Best wishes and first kisses. (Chpt 12)

"Epiphany" - Staind (Chpt 12)

"Brain Damage" - Pink Floyd (Chpt 13)

"Heather's Song" - Andy McKee: I could see this being Otome's song, she's a tough girl in a very tender state, and things are just beginning to look up for her. (Chpt 14)

"Bridge Over Troubled Waters" - Black Label Society (Chpt 15)

"For Word" - Craig D'Andrea: This is a nice summertime, going to the beach song to me, so it was perfect for when everyone was packing up to go to Shimoda. (Chpt 15)

"Grady Fernando Comes to Town" - Solas: I used this song for Koto and Eiichi's first date, back in the old story, but to me it really signifies getting ready to go someplace fun, so I inserted it for when everyone was packing up for their vacation to Shimoda Beach. (Chpt 15)


End file.
